THE  GARDEN 
PRIMER 


GRACE    TABOR 


AND 


GARDNER  TEALL 


GIFT  OF 
A.   P.   Morrison 


ARCH. 
JfcffiRARl 


THE  GARDEN  PRIMER 


There  is  not  a  corner  on  the  face  of  the  earth  where  with 

soil,  sunshine,  seed,  sinew  and  sprinkling,  one  may  not 

have  some  sort  of  a  garden  of  growing  things 


THE 
GARDEN  PRIMER 

A  PRACTICAL  HANDBOOK  ON  THE 

ELEMENTS  OF  GARDENING 

FOR  BEGINNERS 

BY 

GRACE  TABOR 

AND 

GARDNER  TEALL 


THE  JOHN  C.  WINSTON  CO, 

PHILADELPHIA,  PA. 


COPYRIGHT      1910,     BY 
McBRIDE,  WINSTON  &  COMPANY 


ARCH. 
LIBRARY 


GIFT  OP 


TO 

THE  GARDEN'S  APPRENTICES, 

THAT  THEY  MAY  SERVE  JOYOUSLY  AND  WELL, 

THE  AUTHORS  DEDICATE 

THIS  LITTLE  BOOK 


M9562G 


PREFACE 

IT  is  the  purpose  of  this  little  book  to  set  forth 
in  the  most  direct  form,  but  without  technical- 
ities, the  fundamental  principles  of  amateur  gardening 
in  America.  Unlike  the  greater  number  of  the  volumes 
one  finds  in  garden  literature  it  presupposes  no  knowl- 
edge of  the  subject,  rather  aiming  to  satisfy  those  who 
now  for  the  first  time  wish  to  know  how  to  make  things 
grow,  and  are  in  need  of  a  trustworthy  guide  to  going 
about  it.  The  tables  included  have  been  prepared 
with  the  greatest  care,  and  the  entire  matter  appear- 
ing herein  should  prove  applicable  to  conditions 
throughout  every  state. 


CONTENTS 


CHAPTER  PACK 

I  INTRODUCTION I 

II  SORTS  OF  PLANTS 3 

III  THE   SOIL 7 

IV  NOMENCLATURE II 

V  SEEDS  AND  SOWING 1$ 

VI  SEEDLINGS   AND   TRANSPLANTING 21 

VII  PLANTS  AND  CULTIVATION 25 

VIII  FERTILIZING   AND   FERTILIZERS 2Q 

IX  PRUNING 37 

X  HOTBEDS  AND  COLDFRAMES 45 

XI  GARDEN  PESTS  AND  SPRAYING 53 

XII  GARDEN  TOOLS  AND  CULTIVATION 6 1 

XIII  THE  FLOWER  GARDEN 63 

XIV  FLOWER  PLANTING  TABLE 68 

XV  THE  VEGETABLE  GARDEN 71 

XVI  VEGETABLE  PLANTING  TABLE 74 

XVII  THE  GARDENER'S  KALENDAR 79 

XVIII  TABLE    OF   SPRAYING    FOR  GARDEN  PESTS.  112 

XVIX  INDEX 115 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 

PACING    PAGB 

There  is  not  a  corner  on  the  face  of  the  earth 
where  with  soil,  sunshine,  seed,  sinew  and 
sprinkling,  one  may  not  have  some  sort  of 

a  garden  of  growing  things Frontispiece 

The  making  of  a  garden  opens  to  every  man  a  vista 

of  the  delight  of  growing  lovely  things i 

Flats  should  be  filled  with  one  part  garden  loam 

to  one  part  leaf-mold 16 

After  sowing  seeds  in  flats 16 

Watering  the  flats 17 

Firming  the  soil  of  flats 17 

The  workshop  of  a  garden  beginner 20 

Indoor  sowing  apparatus.  . 21 

A  flat  of  seedlings 22 

Growing  salad  seedlings  in  a  flat 22 

Melon  seedlings  grown  in  a  strawberry-box 23 

Melon  seedlings  five  weeks  after  sowing 23 

Thinning  out  the  plants  from  hotbeds  and  coldframes  28 

A  garden  on  a  pile  of  rocks 29 

The  rewards  of  careful  cultivation 32 

Redeeming  a  neglected  corner 33 

Seeded  garden-beds 36 

Well-pruned  trees 37 


FACING    PAGE 


Manner  of  pruning  shrub-branches 42 

Pruned  Geranium  plant 43 

Combination  of  good  and  bad  pruning 44 

The  permanent  hotbed 45 

Hotbed  soil 45 

The  garden  beginner's  work-bench 48 

Marking  off  planting  rows 49 

Knapsack  pump-sprayer 56 

Spraying  outfit 56 

Hollyhocks 57 

Barrel  pump-sprayer 60 

The  gardener's  friends 61 

Making  the  back-yard  attractive 64 

A  well-kept  border  of  annuals 65 

A  neat  vegetable  garden 71 

An  old-fashioned  garden 80 

Beautifying  the  walls 81 

Everyone  may  have  such  a  garden  as  this 81 

DRAWINGS 

PAOB 

Cross  section  of  hotbed 46 

Hotbed  frame 47 

Usual  form  of  coldframe 50 

Coldframe  with  double  sash 51 

Types  of  chewing  insects 55 

Types  of  sucking  insects 55 

Bucket  hand-sprayer 57 

Knapsack  hand-sprayer 57 


THE  GARDEN  PRIMER 


The  making  of  a  garden  opens  to  every  man  a  vista  of 

the  delights  of  growing  lovely  living  things,  of 

watching  them  from  the  time  of  seeding 

until   they   unfold   in   marvelous 

maturity  of  flower  and  fruit 


INTRODUCTORY 

MAKING  a  garden  is  not  the  formidable  thing  it 
is  often  supposed  to  be,  nor  caring  for  it  when 
once  it  is  made  half  so  arduous  as  many  suppose  it  is. 
Faithfulness  to  it,  from  beginning  to  end,  makes  it  a 
joy  to  everyone  as  well  as  a  profit. 

No  matter  how  small  a  plot  of  earth  is  at  one's 
command,  whether  it  be  four  square  feet  or  four  acres, 
Mother  Nature,  aided  by  man's  ingenuity,  has  growing 
things  that  will  thrive  in  it.  The  thing  to  do  is  to 
find  out  which  of  the  plants  you  like  and  need  will 
grow  in  the  space  you  have  available  for  them,  and 
then  learn  when  to  plant  them  and  how  to  care  for 
them  and  for  the  soil  that  is  to  nourish  them  when 
once  they  are  planted,  until  the  happy  day  when  they 
will  have  reached  their  maturity,  and  you  will  have 
had  the  satisfaction  of  giving  an  assuring  answer  to 
the  old-time  question  of  "How  does  your  garden 
grow  ?" 

The  first  step  towards  garden-making  should  be 
with  tapeline  and  a  piece  of  paper.  Measure  up  the 
space  that  is  to  be  devoted  to  growing  things  and  draw 


THE  GARDEN  PRIMER 


a  plan  of  it  to  scale  on  a  sheet  of  heavy  paper,  loca- 
ting thereon  the  position  of  the  house,  outbuildings, 
t  existing  trees,  shrubs,  walks  and  all  other  features  that 
,imis£  be/  tatoi:  into  consideration  in  the  planting 
Scheme.  *  Even  if 'you  are  merely  intending  to  have  a 
iibpt^x  fcf  IJojveijs  jtrplind  the  base  of  your  house,  sketch 
tne  otfrfine  ©£  -ftie*  building  on  paper  as  accurately  to 
measure  as  possible;  or,  better  still,  hunt  up  the  archi- 
tect's working  plan  and  trace  its  outline  to  scale.  There 
is  an  excellent  reason  for  this;  growing  things  should 
always  be  considered  in  their  connection  with  their 
environment,  just  as  in  their  wild  state  they  are  con- 
sidered as  features  of  the  landscape,  against  hillside, 
bordering  ponds  and  rivers,  fringing  streams,  carpeting 
meadows,  and  so  on.  So  no  matter  how  simple  a  plot 
you  are  planning  to  plant,  a  strip  of  shrubbery  ten 
feet  long  by  three  broad  may  be  all  wrong  if  selected 
and  planted  without  due  regard  for  its  place  in  the 
whole  scheme  of  the  premises.  Likewise  with  a  flower- 
bed (though  we  may  concede  to  the  necessities  of  the 
vegetable  patch;  only  even  there  one  has  as  good  a 
chance  to  make  the  plants  as  attractive,  in  a  measure, 
as  in  the  Rose  garden). 

When  you  have  planned  your  garden  on  paper 
and  planting  time  approaches  heed  the  warning  not  to 
rush  into  a  seed-store,  or  a  nurseryman's  to  buy  a 
packet  of  every  seed  that  has  an  attractive  name,  to  take 
home  and  scatter  about  recklessly  with  over-enthusiastic 
faith  that  you  have  done  all  that  is  necessary  to  ensure 
a  garden.  Successful  gardens  are  not  made  that  way. 


n 

SORTS  OF  PLANTS 

HARDY  PERENNIALS  are  plants  that  with- 
stand the  winter  in  the  ground  and  live  for 
years,  often  indefinitely.  They  form  increasingly  large 
clumps  which  may  be  divided  from  time  to  time  to  make 
new  plants,  and  these  may  be  transplanted  as  desired, 
usually  in  the  fall.  Perennials  may  also  be  raised  from 
seed  planted  in  the  spring  or  in  late  summer  and  will 
bloom  the  following  season.  Hardy  Perennials  include 
Trees,  Shrubs  and  Herbs,  and  do  not  require  a  winter 
covering. 

HARDY  ANNUALS  are  plants  that  are  sown  from  seed 
in  the  spring,  last  through  several  months  of  summer, 
and  then  die.  The  seeds  may  be  sown  in  the  open 
ground  in  April  or  in  May,  or  under  glass  frames  or  in 
flat  boxes  indoors  in  late  February  or  March. 

HARDY  BIENNIALS  are  sown  one  year,  bloom  the 
next  year,  and  then  die.  These  should  have  a  light 
winter  protection  of  straw,  or  leaves  held  down  with 
brush.  The  seeds  are  sown  the  same  as  annuals. 

HALF-HARDY  PERENNIALS  and  half-hardy  bien- 
nials are  usually  started  under  glass,  but  may  be  sown 


THE  GARDEN  PRIMER 


in  the  open  ground  after  May  i5th.  They  require 
winter  covering. 

HALF-HARDY  ANNUALS  are  to  be  treated  in  much 
the  same  way  as  tender  annuals,  requiring,  as  they  do, 
the  full  time  of  a  long  summer  in  which  to  develop. 
They  should  not  be  sown  out  of  doors  until  after  June 
ist. 

TENDER  PERENNIALS  require  still  more  care  in 
starting  them.  Sow  under  glass  and  do  not  transplant 
to  the  open  ground  until  after  May  i5th. 

TENDER  BIENNIALS  may  be  treated  as  tender 
perennials. 

TENDER  ANNUALS  are  sown  under  glass  in  early 
spring  and  the  seedlings  protected  from  both  excessive 
sun  and  cold.  They  are  transplanted  from  flats  to 
pots  or  boxes  and  finally  set  out  after  May  25th,  by 
which  time  they  are  well  grown. 

SELF-SOWING  plants  are  those  which  perpetuate 
themselves  through  the  seed  which  they  drop  upon  the 
ground  around  them.  They  cannot  be  depended  on 
to  come  up  in  just  the  right  place,  but  they  may  usually 
be  transplanted.  Poppies,  however,  are  among  those 
self-sowing  plants  which  do  not  survive  transplanting 
and  therefore  must  be  weeded  out  or  allowed  to  remain 
where  they  spring  up. 

SHRUBS  AND  TREES  are  woody  stemmed  plants 
which  differ  very  little,  actually,  from  each  other. 
Usually  a  shrub  has  many  branches  which  start  at  the 
ground,  while  a  tree  has  a  single  trunk.  This  is  not 
uniformly  true  of  either,  however,  and  there  is  really 


SORTS  OF  PLANTS 


no  arbitrary  distinction;  a  small  tree  is  called  a  tree- 
like shrub,  while  a  shrub  attaining  to  30  feet  in  height 
is  referred  to  under  the  same  term.  The  line  between 
the  two  cannot  be  sharply  denned. 

CLIMBERS  are  plants  of  weak  stems,  sometimes 
tall  and  sometimes  low  growing,  which  cannot  lift 
themselves  without  the  aid  of  some  support.  They 
may  be  in  any  one  of  the  classes  mentioned  above  and 
they  may  have  woody  or  juicy  stems.  Those  which 
twine  around  their  support  are,  strictly  speaking, 
vines;  climbers  raise  themselves  by  means  of  trendrils, 
aerial  rootlets  or  some  special  device  provided  for  the 
purpose.  Thus  all  vines  are  climbers,  but  all  climb- 
ers are  not  vines.  Nurserymen  commonly  mean  tall 
growing  plants  when  they  use  the  term  climber;  lower 
growing  kinds  they  define  as  trailers. 

A  difference  of  a  single  degree  of  latitude  has  a 
marked  effect  on  many  plants,  though  it  is  not  distance 
north  or  south  alone  that  tells.  Some  regions,  for 
instance,  from  their  topographical  peculiarities,  may  be 
particularly  adapted  to  the  growth  of  certain  things 
which  ordinarily  would  not  be  hardy  in  that  latitude; 
while  possibly  other  localities  further  south  are  unfavor- 
able by  reason  of  their  configuration  to  the  cultivation 
of  even  lustier  species.  Altitude  enters  into  the  matter 
to  a  certain  degree,  likewise  the  texture  of  the  soil,  the 
proximity  of  large  bodies  of  water  and  the  direction  of 
the  prevailing  winter  winds. 

The  knowledge  that  all  perennials  are  not  as  easily 
raised  from  seed  as  most  annuals,  and  that  the  latter 


THE  GARDEN  PRIMER 


produce  an  immediate  effect  instead  of  delaying  a 
season,  makes  the  latter  more  popular  in  one  sense. 
No  garden  is  complete  without  both,  however,  though 
the  beginner  will  do  well  to  undertake  only  a  few  of 
either  and  those  of  the  simplest  and  easiest  culture. 

Of  course  it  is  apparent  that  under  suitable 
climatic  conditions  the  tenderest  annual  in  the  world 
might  be  perennial  that  is,  it  might  live  indefinitely 
from  year  to  year,  from  either  root  or  self-sown  seed; 
while  it  is  equally  apparent  that  the  hardiest  perennial 
of  a  North  American  garden  would  be  only  an  annual 
if  carried  sufficiently  far  north  from  its  native  habitat. 

Having  thus  briefly  learned  the  sorts  of  plants  and 
the  character  of  their  longevity,  and  having  decided 
what  you  wish  to  plant  and  where  to  plant  it,  the  next 
problem  that  confronts  the  garden  beginner  is  the 
preparation  of  the  soil  of  the  beds  that  are  to  receive 
the  plants.  Therefore  it  is  requisite  that  he  should 
have  some  knowledge  of  the  soiL 


m 

THE  SOIL 

ONE  thing  essential  to  a  garden,  and  without 
which  there  can  hardly  be  a  garden,  is  proper 
soil.  It  is  not  necessary  that  the  beginner  should  go 
into  an  exhaustive  study  of  the  subject,  but  a  general 
acquaintance  with  the  physical  characteristics  at  least 
of  the  various  kinds  of  soil,  is  imperative.  Nothing 
can  make  up  for  a  lack  of  understanding  of  this. 

In  the  first  place  soil  is  classified  in  three  ways: 
first,  according  to  its  origin,  which  means  according  to 
the  rock  from  which  it  was  derived — whether  from 
limestone,  sandstone,  or  from  granitic  formations,  for 
example;  second,  according  to  its  chemical  properties — 
whether  calcareous,  alkaline  and  so  on;  third,  accord- 
ing to  its  physical  or  mechanical  properties — whether 
dry,  moist,  stony,  gravelly,  clayey,  sandy  or  loamy. 

But  for  the  present  we  will  overlook  the  first  two 
classifications,  giving  attention  to  the  third  only,  i.  e. 
the  mechanical  or  physical  properties. 

SOIL  is  made  up  of  particles  of  broken-down  rock 
combined  with  decomposed  organic  (or  living)  matter. 
The  size  of  these  particles,  their  relation  to  each  other, 


THE  GARDEN  PRIMER 


the  proportion  between  them  and  the  air  and  water 
which  they  retain  in  the  infinitesimal  crevices  separat- 
ing them — these  are  the  things  which  govern  the  phys- 
ical characteristics  and  the  soil  texture;  these,  clearly 
understood,  make  it  possible  for  anyone  to  follow  a 
line  of  common-sense  reasoning  and  arrive  at  the  right 
thing  to  do  to  put  any  soil  in  the  condition  most  favor- 
able for  supporting  vegetation.  For  soil  may  be 
modified  almost  as  one  chooses,  especially  within  the 
area  one  has  at  his  disposal  on  the  average  home 
grounds. 

DEEP  SOIL  means  that  having  a  depth  of  at  least 
eight  inches  from  the  surface  to  the  less  productive 
sub-soil. 

LIGHT  SOIL  is  a  term  that  has  nothing  to  do  with 
the  actual  weight,  but  means  loose  or  sandy — open 
textured,  the  contrary  to  HEAVY  SOIL. 

LOAM  is  a  soil  in  which  the  sand,  silt  and  clay  are 
properly  balanced,  making  it  mellow  and  friable.  This 
is  the  ideal  soil  most  generally  favorable  to  plant  life 
because,  being  a  combination  of  sand  and  clay — of 
large  and  small  soil  particles — in  about  equal  propor- 
tions, it  retains  moisture  in  sufficient  quantity  to  sup- 
ply plant  food  in  solution,  and  at  the  same  time  it  is 
properly  aerated.  Air  is  an  important  factor  in  soil 
and  needed  by  the  roots  of  plants  quite  as  much  as 
water. 

The  first  thing  toward  actual  garden  making  for 
the  beginner  to  do,  therefore,  is  to  determine  which 
side  of  the  balance  between  sand  and  clay  is  over- 


THE  SOIL 


weighted  in  the  soil  with  which  he  has  to  deal,  and  how 
much  it  is  overweighted;  there  is  a  simple  test  which 
will  show,  approximately  and  near  enough. 

How  To  Test  the  Soil 

Go  out  into  the  garden  or  onto  the  ground  where 
the  garden  is  to  be,  and  turn  up  a  spadeful  of  earth 
there  three  days  after  there  has  been  a  rainfall.  Is 
it  powdery  and  light  ?  Then  sand  predominates — and 
when  sand  predominates  organic  matter  is  what  is 
needed  to  bind  the  particles  together.  Is  it  sticky  and 
like  putty,  retaining  the  imprint  of  your  fingers  ?  That 
means  a  lack  of  sand,  with  correspondingly  too  much 
clay;  so  it  is  sand  or  some  loosening  agent  that  is  the 
thing  required. 

Ordinary  manure  is  as  good  as  anything  you  can  get 
for  supplying  the  needs  of  a  too  sandy  soil,  while  deep 
plowing,  which  gives  the  water  a  chance  to  escape  from 
clay,  is  often  all  that  an  ordinarily  heavy  soil  that  has 
lain  unworked,  requires  to  make  it  into  a  friable  loam. 
If  this  does  not  lighten  it  enough,  however,  a  dressing 
of  lime  should  follow. 

Begin  your  garden  by  doing  this  work  with  the 
soil.  The  weathering  of  it  during  a  winter  will  help 
greatly,  for  the  action  of  the  frost  and  sun  has  a 
decided  physical  effect  that  should  be  taken  advantage 
of  whenever  possible.  With  a  spring  beginning  there 
is  no  time  for  these  to  do  their  portion  of  the  work — 
but  with  a  start  made  in  the  fall  there  are  from  six 


THE  GARDEN  PRIMER 


to  seven  months  ahead,  during  which  the  elements 
may  have  free  rein.  Turning  up  the  ground  in 
autumn  is  indeed  sometimes  recommended,  even  in 
old  and  established  gardens,  though  this  should  not 
be  done  when  the  soil  is  wet. 

With  outdoors  looked  after,  pay  particular  atten- 
tion to  all  that  the  catalogues  and  garden  literature  have 
to  say  about  soil.  You  know  what  they  mean  when 
they  talk  about  sandy  loam,  or  clay  loam,  or  just  plain 
loam,  and  you  know  which  yours  is.  What  have  they 
to  say  about  your  particular  kind?  Never  mind  if 
they  do  not  agree  with  each  other  or  with  what  may  be 
said  herein;  read  them.  You  will  find  something  to 
think  about — you'll  get  ideas — and  you  will  begin  to 
appreciate  how  much  there  is  of  interest  about  this  very 
common,  ordinary  dirt  under  our  feet  that  we  have 
always  taken  for  granted.  Our  very  lives  depend  upon 
it,  literally.  Isn't  it  worth  studying  a  little  bit  ? 


10 


IV 

NOMENCLATURE 

AT  first,  plant  nomenclature,  that  is,  the  name 
classification  of  plants,  may  appear  a  staggering 
proposition, — but  do  not  become  discouraged  with  the 
names  you  feel  you  have  to  familiarize  yourself  with 
as  you  come  to  look  over  the  seed  catalogues  and 
delve  into  garden  literature.  It  is  not  half  so  bad  as 
it  really  looks,  nor  as  it  sounds  when  one  is  begin- 
ning to  pronounce  the  long  and  often  unfamiliar  plant 
names. 

Indeed,  your  enjoyment  of  every  growing  thing  will 
be  very  much  keener  if  you  make  its  acquaintance  under 
its  own  true  name  instead  of  under  some  dubious  nick- 
name which  may  or  may  not  fit.  The  true  botanical 
name  has  been  bestowed  upon  it  for  some  definite  reason 
by  those  who  knew  what  they  were  about.  It  fits — 
and  it  means  something.  Learn  it;  pronounce  it  in 
sections,  just  the  way  it  is  spelled ;  nine  times  out  of 
ten  you  will  have  it  right — and  the  tenth  is  not  going 
to  matter  at  first. 

Of  course  no  one  in  his  right  mind  will  speak  of 
familiar  flowers  under  their  Latin  names  in  ordinary 
conversation.  That  is  not  why  one  is  urged  to  learn 

ii 


THE  GARDEN  PRIMER 


them;  but  there  are  very  many  things  which  we  already 
know  commonly  under  their  true  names.  Why  not 
know  all  of  them?  By  doing  so  you  will  find  yourself 
able  to  trace  relationships  among  plants  and  plant 
families  which  you  have  never  dreamed  of. 

There  is,  for  example,  the  gigantic  yet  delicately 
lovely  moon  flower  which  blossoms  only  in  the  even- 
ing, the  ever  alluring  morning-glory  which  opens  with 
the  sunrise,  and  the  lacy  foliaged  cypress  vine  which 
bears  its  tiny,  starry  flowers  all  day,  the  same  as  other 
plants — all  members  of  a  family  named  Ipomoea, 
and  all  sharing  a  peculiar  family  idiosyncrasy  in  the 
shape  of  a  toughened  seed  which  must  be  soaked  or 
filed  before  planting,  in  order  to  promote  free  germi- 
nation. This  is  a  very  extensive  family  by  the  way, 
comprising  something  over  three  hundred  members 
living  in  all  parts  of  the  world,  each  bearing  a  dis- 
tinctly traceable  resemblance  to  its  kin. 

Perhaps  it  will  help  you  to  understand  the  matter 
better  if  you  compare  the  name  of  the  plant  with  the 
name  of  a  person,  and  fix  in  your  mind  the  likeness 
between  them.  For  instance,  a  certain  individual  is 
a  Brown,  let  us  say,  a  comparison  to  a  certain  plant 
being  a  phlox.  That  is  the  generic  or  family  name. 
But  which  Brown  is  he?  Why,  John  Brown,  to 
be  sure  (or  perhaps  James  Brown),  that  is  the  same  as 
a  Phlox  being  phlox  decussata  (or  perhaps  phlox  Drum- 
mondii),  only  with  the  plants  the  names  are  reversed 
you  see,  as  we  find  the  Browns  in  the  directory  reading 
' 'Brown,  John,"  but  it  means  just  the  same  as  John 

12 


NOMENCLATURE 


Brown.  Now  with  the  Phlox,  decussata  and  likewise 
Drummondii  are  the  species  names,  corresponding  to 
the  baptismal  or  Christian  name  of  a  person.  However, 
the  identity  is  not  yet  sufficiently  clear,  as  there  may  be 
several  John  Browns;  which  one  are  we  talking  about? 
John  Brown  the  lawyer,  perhaps,  or  maybe  John 
Brown  the  doctor,  and  that  is  the  same  as  phlox 
decussata,  independence,  or,  again,  phlox  Drummondii, 
stellata,  these  third  names  indicating  the  variety 
and  thus  establishing  beyond  a  doubt  the  particular 
Phlox  we  have  in  mind,  just  as  John  Brown  the  lawyer 
establishes  the  identity  of  the  particular  Brown  we 
have  in  mind. 

You  will  find  family,  species  and  variety  all  spelled 
with  both  capital  and  small  initial  letters.  This  is 
perfectly  right  though  it  may  look  queer.  The  rule 
is  that  capitals  are  only  used  when  a  proper  name 
furnished  the  foundation  for  the  plant  name — phlox 
Drummondii  for  instance  is  a  Phlox  originated  by  a 
man  named  Drummond — while  small  letters  are  used 
at  all  other  times.  Unfortunately  many  are  not  as 
careful  in  this  respect  as  they  ought  to  be  and  mis- 
takes are  rather  common. 

There  are,  of  course,  many  more  divisions  of  plants 
than  the  three  here  given,  but  the  others  are  of  interest 
and  importance  to  the  botanist  only.  The  practical 
gardener  is  not  keen  about  marshalling  great  families 
into  still  greater  classes,  or  clans  and  cohorts,  and  these 
again  into  some  still  larger  group,  with  a  more  compre- 
hensive title — and  all  things  considered,  it  is  probably 

13 


THE  GARDEN  PRIMER 


fortunate  that  this  is  so.  One  cannot  but  feel  that  the 
garden  would  suffer  if  it  were  otherwise,  for  the  subject 
is  absorbing,  once  it  is  undertaken — and  proportionately 
exacting  in  the  matter  of  time. 

Common  or  popular  names  vary  in  different  parts 
of  the  country  so  greatly  that  they  are  absolutely  unre- 
liable. Botanical  names,  on  the  contrary,  are  as  fixed 
as  the  laws  of  the  Medes  and  Persians,  they  come  easy, 
once  you  get  started,  and  you  can  order  the  thing 
you  want  from  almost  any  dealer  under  the  sun  and 
be  sure  you  are  getting  it  right. 


SEEDS  AND  SOWING 

AS  there  can  be  no  successful  garden  without  proper 
knowledge  of  the  soil,  neither  can  there  be  a 
good  garden  without  some  knowledge  of  seeds.  The 
gardener  can  never  hope  to  know  in  a  lifetime  as 
much  about  these  tiny  mysteries  as  a  little  honest 
attention  will  teach  him  about  dirt ;  still  there  is  much 
to  learn;  much  that  may  be  learned  and  a  little  that 
must.  Let  us  take  this  last — this  necessity — first  into 
consideration. 

In  planting  seeds  the  inexperienced  usually  err 
on  the  side  of  thoroughness,  burying  them  beneath  a 
weight  of  earth  that  promptly  smothers  all  their  aspira- 
tions. There  is  a  certain  amount  of  energy  stored 
in  a  seed — enough  to  reproduce  the  plant  from  which 
it  came — but  not  enough  to  do  more  than  this,  to 
move  many  times  its  own  weight  of  earth  aside  in 
order  to  do  its  work.  Hopelessly  they  give  up  the 
ghost  and  go  the  way  of  all  dead  things,  instead  of 
the  way  of  the  living — and  the  gardener  grumbles, 
when  he  has  only  himself  to  blame. 

15 


THE  GARDEN  PRIMER 


The  earth-covering  should  never  be  deeper  than 
five  times,  and  usually  not  more  than  three  times,  a 
seed's  greatest  diameter,  when  planting  out  of  doors. 

In  frames  or  flats  (shallow  boxes)  indoors  a  cover- 
ing equal  to  the  seed's  own  diameter  is  sufficient,  be- 
cause in  the  latter  situations  the  moisture  and  tempera- 
ture can  be  artificially  regulated.  The  greater  depth 
out  of  doors  is  simply  to  insure  against  drying  out  and 
chilling  the  seeds  where  there  is  no  means  of  governing 
these  factors. 

Whether  you  are  going  to  plant  indoors  or  out, 
water  the  soil  where  the  seeds  are  to  go  thoroughly  the 
day  before  putting  them  in.  This  will  bring  it  to  just 
the  right  degree  of  mellowness  at  the  time  of  sowing. 

Seeds  go  into  the  ground  in  drills  (as  do  Sweet 
Peas),  in  hills  (as  do  Melons),  singly — that  is  in  con- 
tinuous rows  or  in  clusters,  one  at  a  time — or  scattered 
like  grass  (as  do  Poppies  and  Petunias),  according  to 
the  plant  which  they  will  produce.  The  packet  in 
which  each  variety  comes  has  printed  upon  it  the 
method  to  be  followed  with  the  seed  enclosed;  so  that 
part  of  it  is  easy,  as  these  directions  are  usually 
reliable — always  so  with  first-class  seedsmen. 

If  you  have  seeds  to  sow  in  drills,  lay  a  board  down 
upon  the  proposed  bed  or  wherever  the  seeds  are  to  go, 
for  a  "ruler,"  draw  a  line  along  its  edge  with  a  pointed 
stake  for  a  "pencil,"  dragging  it  deep  into  the  soil  or 
lightly  along  its  surface  according  to  the  depth  of  drill 
the  diameter  of  the  seed  demands;  scatter  the  seeds  into 
this  little  trough  and  brush  the  earth  that  was  pushed 

16 


Flats  should   be  filled  with  one   part  garden   loam  to  one   part   leaf- 
mold,  and   enough   sand  added  so  that  the   mixture  will 
crumble  apart  after  being  squeezed  in  the  hand 


After  sowing  the  seed  either  in   rows  or  broadcast,  sift  over  them 

enough  fine  soil  to  cover  them  to  a  depth  of  two  or 

three  times  their  diameter 


In  watering  the  flats  cover  the  soil  with  burlap 
to  prevent  washing  out  the  seeds 


After  sifting  the  soil  covering  over  the  seeds  press  the  whole  area 

firmly  with  a  flat  board.    A  shingle  will  do,  but  you  can 

easily  make  a  firming  board  like  this 


SEEDS  AND  SOWING 


out  of  it,  back  over  them.  Then  pat  it  lightly  down 
with  a  float — a  "flatiron"  contrivance  of  wood,  6x9 
inches  or  thereabouts  and  an  inch  or  two  thick,  with  a 
small  piece  nailed  upon  its  upper  side  for  a  handle.  It 
can  be  made  of  any  old  pieces  of  wood  that  happen  to 
be  available. 

Seeds  sown  singly  in  rows  should  have  the  same 
long  drills  marked  for  them,  the  seeds  themselves  being 
dropped  in  at  regular  intervals  instead  of  continuously. 
Hills  are  just  shallow,  saucer-shaped  depressions  into 
which  the  requisite  number  of  seeds  are  dropped,  sep- 
arated so  that  they  will  not  touch  each  other.  The 
earth  is  drawn  over  them  and  as  the  seedlings  shoot 
up,  gaining  in  height,  more  earth  is  drawn  up  from  the 
sides  until  the  hill  is  formed  which  supports  the  little 
plants  and  deepens  their  roots. 

Scattered  or  broadcast  sowing  is  like  the  sifting 
of  pepper  from  a  shaker,  and  the  earth  over  the  seeds 
is  sifted  on  in  the  same  light  fashion  if  any  at  all  is 
used  to  cover  them.  Usually  seeds  that  are  scattered 
are  simply  firmed  into  the  ground  by  pressing  with 
the  float,  the  idea  being  always  to  bring  the  grains  of 
soil  close  against  the  seed  on  every  side,  keeping  it 
evenly  moist  by  capillary  action  and  allowing  no  irreg- 
ular spaces  for  air  to  intervene  and  shut  off  this  mois- 
ture. Air  is  essential,  to  be  sure,  but  not  an  excess  of 
it  on  one  side  and  none  on  the  other. 

The  beginner  is  apt,  however,  to  give  an  excess  of 
water  rather  than  of  air.  Many  a  garden  has  been 
drowned  under  a  simple  faith  that  it  is  being  thor- 

17 


THE  GARDEN  PRIMER 


oughly  watered.  The  amount  of  water  a  garden  re- 
quires is  just  enough  to  maintain  the  soil  at  a  condi- 
tion of  slowly  crumbling  apart  in  the  hand  after  being 
squeezed — and  this  proportion  should  be  constantly 
maintained.  Too  dry  a  soil  or  a  soil  that  is  too  wet 
even,  is  not  so  bad  as  the  alternations  between  the 
two  extremes  which  careless  gardening  permits. 

Seeds  vary  greatly  in  the  time  required  for  germina- 
tion. Some  sprout  as  soon  as  the  earth  closes  around 
them,  seemingly,  while  others  lie  dormant  for  so  long 
that  the  novice  at  last  gives  up  hope,  growing  so  thor- 
oughly resigned  to  his  disappointment  that  he  forgets 
them  completely,  when  lo!  Up  comes  the  living  green 
one  day,  quite  a  year  perhaps,  from  the  planting  time. 

But  happily  such  procrastination  is  found  only 
among  the  slow  growing  plants,  with  which  the  beginner 
is  seldom  tempted  to  experiment — the  perennials  which 
furnish  our  trees  and  shrubs  and  hardiest  vegetation 
generally.  Flowers  and  vegetables  ordinarily  spring 
quickly  into  activity,  in  a  very  satisfactory  and  obliging 
manner,  rewarding  the  beginner's  labors  usually  within 
a  fortnight — sometimes  much  sooner. 

So  much  for  the  practical  details  of  seed  handling; 
and  now  for  one  or  two  things  about  seeds  themselves 
that  ought  to  be  understood — and  that  are  interesting 
to  know. 

A  seed  is  the  case  in  which,  carefully  folded  and 
ingeniously  packed  away,  lies  an  embryonic  plant,  with 
the  food  necessary  to  sustain  it  for  a  certain  period  of 
its  life  above  ground.  In  some  seeds  this  plant  is 

18 


SEEDS  AND  SOWING 


developed  enough  for  microscopic  dissection  to  reveal 
it  plainly,  in  others  it  is  very  rudimentary. 

Usually  it  has  two  plump  divisions  called  cotyle- 
dons— four  syllables  cot-y-le-dons ,  with  the  accent  on 
the  first;  there  are,  however,  plants  which  have  more  or 
only  one,  but  they  will  come  later — and  these,  if  they 
push  their  way  up  through  the  earth — some  do  not — 
spread  apart  and  look  to  us  like  leaves.  Consequently 
we  usually  speak  of  them  as  the  first  or  seed  leaves, 
although  they  aren't  leaves  at  all.  It  is  between  them 
and  protected  by  them  that  the  actual  growing  point  of 
the  plant  waits, — the  plumule  or  true  leaf-bud  whence 
the  real  plant  is  to  arise,  with  the  plant's  true  leaves. 

The  cotyledons  are  only  caretakers — the  nurse- 
maids of  the  baby  plant  itself — which  feed  and  guard  it 
until  it  has  grown  big  enough  to  draw  its  own  susten- 
ance, through  its  true  leaves  and  the  little  roots  that 
have  been  keeping  pace  underground  with  the  leaves' 
growth,  from  the  elements  about.  Until  a  true  leaf  is 
formed,  every  plant  lives  on  the  food  stored  away  with 
it  in  the  seed,  no  matter  how  miscroscopic  that  seed 
may  be. 

Not  until  the  true  leaves  have  developed,  generally 
speaking,  are  seedlings  strong  enough  to  bear  handling 
and  transplanting.  Some  of  your  seed  packets  will  tell 
you  to  transplant  when  the  third  leaf  appears,  or  to  thin 
out  when  the  true  leaves  appear,  which  means  of  course 
the  third  leaf  after  the  cotyledons  in  the  first  instance, 
the  first  pair  of  leaves  in  the  second — for  sometimes  the 
true  leaves  appear  in  pairs,  opposite  on  their  stalk, 

19 


THE  GARDEN  PRIMER 


while  others  come  out  singly,  one  on  one  side,  the  next 
on  the  other.  Always  follow  such  directions  carefully 
and  do  not  anticipate  nor  wait  beyond  the  stipulated 
time. 

Once  you  have  watched  a  seedling — any  seedling — 
through  its  rudimentary  growth  from  funny,  round 
or  oval,  sturdy  little  cotyledons  to  two  or  three  true 
leaves  and  noted  the  marked  difference  in  the  appear- 
ance of  the  latter  from  the  former,  you  will  wonder 
why  you  never  noticed  it  before — if  you  have  not. 
Seed  germination  is  one  of  the  most  interesting  things 
in  this  very  interesting  world,  though  it  is  common — 
almost  as  common  as  the  dirt. 


20 


Here   is  the  workshop  of  a   garden   beginner 

who  has  learned  that  everything  in 

the  place  for  it  saves  time  and 

and  makes  gardening  half 

as    easy    again 


Here  we  see  Flats,  Soil-sifter,  and  Watering- 
can  all  ready  for  the  garden  beginner  who 
would  experiment  with  raising  plants 
indoors  to  set  out   later 


VI 
SEEDLINGS  AND  TRANSPLANTING 

SEEDLINGS  are  little  plants  just  from  the  seed 
raised  indoors  or  out,  wherever  convenient.  Their 
removal  to  better  places — the  process  of  transplanting — 
is  a  part  of  gardening  extremely  important  for  the 
garden  beginner  to  understand,  inasmuch  as  he  may 
often  make  almost  his  entire  garden  this  way,  on  the 
first  season,  buying  seedlings  from  a  florist  if  he  has 
been  late  in  making  a  start  with  garden  operations. 

The  soil  into  which  seedlings  are  to  be  moved  from 
their  seed  bed  should  be  in  about  the  same  condition, 
as  regards  moisture,  as  the  soil  in  which  seeds  are 
sown — that  is,  as  moist  as  a  previous  day's  watering 
will  make  it.  And  the  soil  from  which  they  are  taken 
will,  of  course,  be  about  the  same,  and  will  yield  their 
roots  readily,  without  tearing. 

At  this  stage  of  operations  comes  in  the  dibble — 
a  most  useful  affair  which,  thrust  an  inch  or  so  into 
the  earth  half  an  inch  from  the  seedling,  is  twisted  and 
worked  and  tilted  this  way  and  that  gently  until  the 
soil  is  loosened  enough  to  let  the  little  plant  be  picked 
lightly  from  it.  For  very  tiny  plantlets  a  toothpick 


21 


THE  GARDEN  PRIMER 


makes  as  good  a  dibble  as  may  be  had,  but  there  are 
occasions  when  a  section  of  broom  handle,  sharpened 
like  a  long  pointed  pencil,  is  not  a  bit  too  big.  A  little 
practice  with  the  tool  will  quickly  teach  you  the  size 
appropriate  for  any  particular  plant. 

Lift  the  seedling  by  taking  one  of  its  leaves  care- 
fully between  the  soft  ball  of  the  thumb  and  index 
finger — you  will  be  surprised  at  the  ease  with  which  you 
will  handle  mere  atoms  of  plants  this  way — not  touch- 
ing the  body  of  the  plant  at  all,  nor  allowing  its  roots 
to  come  in  contact  with  anything. 

Thrust  the  dibble  into  the  earth  at  the  spot  the 
plant  is  to  occupy,  making  a  hole  as  deep  or  a  little 
deeper  than  its  longest  root;  lower  the  seedling  into 
this  hole  until  it  is  as  deep  as  it  originally  grew,  then 
thrust  the  dibble  down  once  more,  half  an  inch  from  it 
this  time,  and  by  tilting  the  handle  over  towards  it 
gently  press  earth  against  and  around  its  roots.  If 
the  hole  seems  insufficiently  filled  after  this,  leaving 
the  plant  unsteady  and  loosely  set,  thrust  the  dibble 
down  at  another  spot  or  lay  its  point  flat  onto  the  soil, — 
alongside  the  plant's  stem  and  press  down  until  the 
earth  falls  into  place,  filling  the  hole  completely.  Do 
not  pack  the  dirt,  but  make  it  firm. 

Water  moderately  after  the  work  is  finished,  unless 
the  sun  shines  on  the  plants;  this  will  help  to  carry 
the  earth  close  around  the  roots,  settling  it  and  pressing 
out  the  air  pockets. 

With  seedlings  always  be  particular  about  obtaining 
them  in  a  fresh  condition  from  your  florist  if  you  have 

22 


A   Flat  of  Seedlings   ready  to   be   pricked   off 
and  transplanted 


Growing  Salad  Seedlings  in  a  Flat  placed  by 
the  window  to  receive  the  sunlight 


Melon     seedlings    that    have     been 
started  indoors  in  a  straw- 
berry  box 


Five  weeks  after  seeding  these  melon  plants 
are  ready  for  setting  out 


SEEDLINGS  AND  TRANSPLANTING 

not  yourself  grown  them  from  seed.  It  is  not  wise  to 
set  out  sun-wearied  plantlets  that  have  been  taken  up 
from  their  beds  and  allowed  to  stand  for  hours  without 
proper  care  and  protection.  Seedlings  once  removed 
are  tender  things  until  they  find  themselves  at  home  in 
their  new  environment,  and  make  a  fresh  start  by 
taking  hold  upon  the  soil  that  has  adopted  them. 

Short  and  stocky  plants  transplant  always  with 
better  results  than  those  of  tall,  thin  and  "  spindling " 
growth,  and  this  sturdiness  should  always  be  the  guide 
in  making  a  selection  from  commercial  stock.  Where 
seedlings  are  being  raised  by  the  beginner,  let  him  bear 
in  mind  that  a  plant  which  is  frequently  transplanted 
endures  the  operation  with  much  more  grace  than  one 
which  is  left  long  in  one  place.  Frequent  transplanting 
tends  to  the  development  of  a  more  compact  root 
system  which  will  be  made  up  of  many  fine  and  hair- 
like  short  feeding  roots  instead  of  the  long,  tenacious 
growth  which  the  undisturbed  plant  is  able  to  put  forth 
— and  naturally  the  former  are  less  liable  to  injury  and 
breakage  when  lifted  than  the  latter. 

There  are  probably  no  plants  which  cannot  be 
transplanted  by  a  skilled  operator,  but  there  are  many 
which  certainly  will  not  tolerate  the  treatment  of  any 
but  an  expert — and  some  that  even  the  expert  shrinks 
from  handling.  Usually  these  are  species  or  varieties 
which  send  straight  down,  deep  into  the  earth,  a  long, 
trunk-like  root  which  is  called  a  tap-root.  This 
simply  will  not  yield  to  removal  without  breakage. 

23 


THE  GARDEN  PRIMER 


Whenever  the  instructions  on  a  seed  packet  direct 
that  the  seed  be  sown  where  it  is  wanted  in  the  garden, 
and  say  nothing  about  transplanting,  it  is  very  likely 
that  the  plant  is  one  of  those  which  puts  forth  such  a 
root — and  the  direction  should  be  literally  followed,  else 
there  will  be  failure. 

Good-sized,  growing  plants  with  a  mass  of  roots 
large  enough  to  need  some  earth  removed  to  make 
room  to  set  them,  may  be  firmed  into  place  by  filling 
with  water,  gently  poured,  a  depression  left  around  their 
crown.  After  this  has  settled,  the  rest  of  the  earth  is 
thrown  into  place — and  thus  the  whole  operation  is 
accomplished  with  comparatively  no  violence  or  shock 
to  even  the  tenderest  rootlets. 


24 


vn 

PLANTS  AND  CULTIVATION 

T  T  7"HEN  plants  have  reached  maturity  or  approach  it; 
VV  whether  flower,  fruit  or  vegetable,  watch  them 
closely  and  do  not  withdraw  constant  care  from  them. 
Volumes  written  about  them  could  not  cover,  compre- 
hensively, all  their  little  queernesses  and  strange  freaks. 
Each  one  seems  almost  a  problem  by  itself,  sprung 
up  from  the  ground  to  show  some  new  phase  of 
Mother  Nature's  ingenuity,  and  each  gardener  must 
learn  by  his  own  experience  how  to  meet  the  par- 
ticular emergencies  arising  from  the  combination  of 
soil,  weather  and  plant  with  which  he  has  to  deal. 

But  while  maturing  plants  differ  in  their  require- 
ments greatly  and  each  must  be  studied  by  itself,  there 
is  one  thing  that  is  appreciated  by  all  alike,  and  that  is 
tillage.  The  man  with  the  hoe,  and  the  rake,  and  the 
cultivator,  is  the  being  they  hail  as  friend,  be  sure  of 
that.  Indeed  this  stirring  of  the  soil  is  so  great  a  benefit 
that  one  of  the  most  ancient  garden  maxims  says 
"tillage  is  manure." 

It  is  not  alone  to  keep  the  weeds  down,  however, 
that  this  stirring  of  the  surface  must  be  kept  up, 
surprising  as  it  may  seem  and  contrary  to  popular 

25 


THE  GARDEN  PRIMER 


notions.  Incidentally  it  does  prevent  them  from 
gaining  a  foothold  of  course,  but  its  great  merit  lies  in 
its  action  on  the  soil  itself. 

Moisture  is  carried  through  soil  by  capillary  attrac- 
tion. When  rain  or  dew  falls  on  the  ground  it  penetrates 
to  plant  roots  by  means  of  this  action,  going  down  and 
down  until  it  is  equalized  in  the  soil  or  finds  a  way 
through  into  still  deeper  fissures  and  drains  out  into 
rivers  or  sp  ings. 

With  the  coming  of  fair  weather  after  a  rain,  how- 
ever, this  downward  action  is  immediately  reversed 
on  the  surface,  where  the  water  particles  first  yield 
themselves  to  the  air  and  heat  of  the  sun  and  pass  from 
the  ground  completely.  Gradually  the  pull  upward 
of  this  same  capillary  force  draws  the  fluid  from  deeper 
down  until  all  that  the  thirsty  earth  has  absorbed  is 
relentlessly  taken  from  it  and  scattered  in  the  air  again 
as  vapor. 

But  tillage  is  the  interrupter  of  this  robbery  of  the 
sun.  It  interposes  a  little,  thin  blanket  of  soil  particles 
which  are  too  widely  separated  from  each  other  for 
capillary  pull  to  be  efficacious,  and  the  soil  beneath  it  is 
thus  enabled  to  retain  the  precious  drops  for  a  much 
longer  period,  even  in  decided  drought. 

Then,  too,  this  finely  pulverized,  blanketing  soil 
absorbs  moisture  more  readily  than  a  hard-baked, 
unstirred  surface,  and  even  the  light  precipitation  of 
dew,  night  after  night,  is  greedily  drunk  by  it. 

So  the  importance  of  tilling  rests  not  in  its  merit 
as  a  weed  eradicator,  you  see.  But  happily  it  does 

26 


PLANTS  AND  CULTIVATION 


eradicate  them  thoroughly — for  weeds  are  gluttons  and 
by  virtue  of  this  spirit  in  them  are  able  to  take  the  best 
of  everything  from  a  piece  of  ground,  starving  out  its 
rightful  tenants. 

Go  over  a  garden — or  a  bed,  or  whatever  you  are 
tending — at  least  twice  a  week  with  this  gentle  surface 
"scratching."  That  is  all  that  it  need  amount  to, 
really;  the  stirring  need  not  be  deep — an  inch  of  loose 
soil  is  enough — but  it  must  be  frequent,  and  only  heavy 
rain  should  be  allowed  to  interfere  with  the  semi- 
weekly  repetition  of  it. 

For  small  surfaces  one  of  the  small  hand  weeders 
is  excellent.  For  larger  spaces  a  hand  cultivator,  made 
purposely  for  tilling  and  used  like  a  hoe,  is  better. 
There  is,  too,  a  wheel-hoe,  which  is  excellent  in  gar- 
den rows,  though  it  is  not  adapted  to  every  sort  of 
location  as  the  hand  cultivator  is. 

Deeper  stirring  of  the  ground  has  more  marked 
physical  effects  on  the  soil,  hastening  chemical  activities 
and  making  the  stores  of  plant  food  available.  Very 
often  soil  contains  all  the  elements  necessary  to  support 
plant  life  richly,  but  not  in  such  form  that  the  plants 
can  consume  them.  Therefore  they  go  hungry  in  the 
midst  of  plenty,  even  as  a  man  might  in  the  midst  of 
quantities  of  those  elements  which  science  has  found 
out  compose  man — if  they  were  not  present  in  forms 
available  to  his  teeth,  appetite  and  digestive  appa- 
ratus. 

Remember  always,  however,  that  deep  tillage  is  not 
a  conserver  of  moisture.  On  the  contrary  it  lightens 

27 


THE  GARDEN  PRIMER 


stiff  and  heavy  soils  by  draining  them.  Thus  they  be- 
come "deeper,"  warmer,  finer  and  consequently  more 
easily  penetrated  by  the  tiny  hairlike  rootlets  that  are 
the  actual  feeders. 

Plants  growing  as  specimens — that  is  shrubs  or 
flowers  set  by  themselves  and  not  in  a  bed  or  border — 
need  this  same  treatment  and  respond  to  it  with  grati- 
tude almost  as  marked  as  the  humbler  garden  stuff 
shows.  Even  trees  appreciate  the  loosening  of  the 
earth  around  their  trunks.  Indoor  pot  plants,  too, 
should  be  included.  In  fact  one  should  cultivate  the 
habit  of  disturbing  the  surface  soil  around  practically 
everything  that  grows,  for  tillage  is  a  requisite  first, 
last,  and  all  the  time,  to  which  everything  else  is  sec- 
ondary. 


28 


By  the   time   April   comes  around   the   plants 
in   your   hotbeds   and   coldframes   will 
need  thinning  out,  so  strong  seed- 
lings   will    be    ready    for 
May    transplanting 


Even  a  pile  of  rocks  in  a  back  yard  can   be  made  into  a 

lovely  Rock  Garden,  and  such  a  garden  has  inspired 

many  a   beginner  to  further  experiments 


VIII 
FERTILIZING  AND  FERTILIZERS 

IT  is  astonishing  that  such  a  measure  of  good  luck 
attends  the  guesses  which  most  of  us  make  at  supply- 
ing  the  needs  of  the  soil — or  to  be  more  exact,  the  needs 
of  the  plants  which  grow  in  the  soil — because  veiy 
few  really  know  anything  about  it.  But  of  course  the 
makers  of  commercial  fertilizers  have  helped  us  greatly, 
and  there  are  many,  scientifically  compounded  and  of 
real  value,  upon  the  market,  every  pound  accompanied 
with  directions  for  its  application  to  the  soil.  What 
these  compounds  do,  however,  and  why  they  do  it,  and 
why  it  needs  doing,  are  details  of  the  matter  that  even 
very  advanced  gardeners  do  not  trouble  to  concern  them- 
selves with — at  least  not  often.  The  general  idea  is  to 
make  the  soil  "rich,"  and  if  one  thing  doesn't  produce 
a  crop  luxuriant  enough  to  indicate  that  this  has  been 
accomplished,  something  else  is  tried — something  that  is 
hit  upon  somehow,  somewhere,  that  somebody  says  is 
good  because  it  has  benefited  some  other  garden. 

Of  course  everybody  knows  that  the  growth  of  a 
plant  requires  food  just  as  much  as  the  growth  of  a  chiM 
or  a  bird  or  anything  else  in  creation  requires  food. 

29 


THE  GARDEN  PRIMER 


But  the  ideas  about  this  food  are  very  vague;  "what 
plants  eat"  is  an  untold  tale,  mysterious,  almost  chimer- 
ical to  the  practical  mind  accustomed  to  seeing  before 
believing.  Let  us  see  if  we  can't  straighten  this  out  a 
little  and  come  to  a  real  comprehension  of  plant  feed- 
ing; then  fertilizers  will  not  seem  so  deadly  dull  and 
uninteresting, — and  incomprehensible. 

The  food  of  plants  consists  of  thirteen  "chemical 
elements."  Nine  of  these  are  taken  by  the  plant 
directly  from  the  soil — these  are  the  pure  mineral  plant 
foods — three  are  taken  from  water  and  from  air,  and  the 
thirteenth  and  last  is  taken  principally  from  decaying 
organic  matter  in  the  soil. 

In  order  to  understand  this  quite  clearly  let  us 
stop  just  here  long  enough  to  take  a  look  at  the  chemical 
classification  of  the  soil,  spoken  of  in  a  previous 
chapter.  Soil  is  made  up  of  mineral  matter  and  organic 
matter — two  forms  that  are  of  course,  widely  different — 
and  to  get  at  this  composition  of  it  in  the  simplest  way 
possible  we  will  follow  the  suggestion  of  one  of  the 
Department  of  Agriculture  experts  and  magnify  a  cubic 
inch  of  soil,  in  the  imagination,  to  a  cubic  mile — and 
then  look  it  over.  It  becomes  very  vivid,  and  the 
processes  going  on  in  it  are  plainly  revealed,  under  such 
examination. 

It  will  look  like  a  mass  of  rocks  and  stones  vary- 
ing from  the  size  of  a  pea  to  boulders  several  feet  in 
diameter.  These  are  the  mineral  particles — in  common 
parlance  the  "dirt" — which  predominate  and  form  the 
foundation  of  all  soil.  Among  these  rocks  and  stones, 

30 


FERTILIZING  AND  FERTILIZERS 

in  many  of  their  large  and  small  interstices,  will  be 
decaying  pieces  of  plant  roots  and  stems  and  other 
organic  matter  which  appear  very  much  like  logs  and 
pieces  of  logs  rotting  among  masses  of  rock  and  gravel. 
All  of  this  organic  substance  will  be  dripping  with 
water  like  a  soaked  sponge  while  all  the  stones  and  rocks 
have  a  layer  of  water  over  their  surfaces.  And  finally, 
in  all  the  spaces  where  there  is  nothing  else,  there  is 
air — indeed  nearly  half  the  volume  of  the  whole  cubic 
mile  is  air. 

A  plant  root  coming  down  into  this  magnified 
cubic  inch  of  soil  would  be  of  course  an  enormous  thing, 
pushing  its  way  among  the  rocks  and  stones  and  decay- 
ing matter  with  a  great,  tireless,  steady,  resistless, 
pressure  that  would  move  the  biggest  of  them.  Near 
the  tip  of  this  ever  extending  and  down-reaching  growth, 
small  hollow  tubes — root  hairs — would  be  seen  reaching 
out  and  feeling  this  way  and  that,  sucking  the  water 
from  the  surfaces  of  the  rocks  and  from  the  dripping, 
spongy  masses  among  them  by  drawing  it  through 
their  thin  and  delicate  walls. 

In  this  water  is  the  mineral  food,  dissolved  off  in 
the  minutest  particles  from  the  "  rocks " — and  it  is 
somewhat  staggering  to  note,  by  the  way,  that  in 
order  to  produce  one  pound  of  growth  in  dry  matter — 
that  is  in  branch  and  leaf,  flower  and  fruit— from  300 
to  800  pounds  of  water  must  be  taken  in  by  a  plant's 
roots,  drawn  up  through  its  stalks  and  branches,  and 
discharged  or  "  transpired  "  by  its  leaves.  Think  of  the 
stupendous  work  being  carried  on  by  all  the  silent  green 

31 


THE  GARDEN  PRIMER 


things  that  we  give  scarce  a  thought  to  in  the  long, 
drowsy  summer  days! 

All  fertilizers  present,  in  different  forms,  three 
essentials — phosphoric  acid,  potash  and  nitrogen.  The 
latter  is  the  last  of  those  thirteen  chemical  elements 
mentioned  which  feed  vegetation — the  one  which 
comes  principally  from  decaying  organic  matter  in  the 
soil — and  in  some  respects  it  is  the  most  important  of  all. 
Unfortunately  it  is  the  one  most  easily  lost,  nitrates 
being  very  soluble,  through  washing  out,  or  exhausted 
in  other  ways;  therefore  it  is  the  one  which  should  be 
applied  only  in  sufficient  quantity  for  the  immediate 
use  of  the  plants  to  be  grown,  and  just  at  the  proper 
time  for  their  needs.  It  is  usually  well  to  wait  until  they 
are  above  the  ground. 

Surplus  phosphoric  acid  and  potash,  on  the  con- 
trary, will  usually  remain  in  the  soil  until  succeeding 
crops  use  them  up,  so  it  does  not  matter  so  much  if 
these  are  applied  in  excess.  They  are  not  wasted. 

What  is  known  as  a  complete  fertilizer  is  a  com- 
bination of  these  three  in  the  proportion  generally  of 
i  part  nitrogen,  2  parts  phosphoric  acid  and  2\  to  3 
parts  potash.  Such  a  fertilizer  will  meet  all  require- 
ments of  the  average  garden,  especially  if  the  soil  is 
treated  with  lime  first.  Lime  is  not  a  fertilizer  in 
the  strictest  sense,  but  it  sweetens  the  soil  as  well  as 
helps  to  bring  about  physical  and  other  changes  that 
make  plant  food  available. 

The  sources  of  each  of  these  three  fertilizer  ingre- 
dients are  important  to  know  and  remember,  for  even 

32 


With  careful  cultivation  such  current-laden  bushes  as  these 

will  reward  the  garden  beginner  for  all  his 

trouble  and  pains 


FERTILIZING  AND  FERTILIZERS 

though  a  complete  commercial  product  that  just  suits 
one's  garden  is  found,  it  is  well  to  have  an  intelligent 
understanding  of  its  composition.  Many  times  the 
application  of  one  of  the  three  is  all  that  is  needed  and 
where  this  is  the  case  it  is  much  better  to  use  only  the 
one — for  gorging  the  soil  is  as  bad  as  starving  it. 

Nitrogen  is  supplied  by  nitrate  of  soda,  sulphate  of 
ammonia,  cotton  seed  meal,  high  grade  dried  blood, 
green  manuring — that  is  a  leguminous  crop  such  as 
cow  peas,  clover  of  all  kinds,  soy  beans  and  others, 
grown  and  plowed  under — and  by  stable  manure. 
No  fertilizer  is  better  than  the  latter  if  properly  handled 
and  all  fertilizers  should  be  supplemented  by  it  for  the 
humus  that  it  carries  into  the  soil. 

Potash  is  furnished  by  muriate  and  sulphate  of 
potash — the  latter  is  preferable  as  it  can  be  used  on  all 
plants  while  the  former  cannot — by  a  crude  German 
product  called  kainite,  and  by  unleached  wood  ashes. 
The  latter  of  course  yield  it  in  a  much  less  degree  for  a 
given  bulk  but  they  are  invaluable  as  a  fertilizer. 

Phosphoric  acid  comes  in  "floats" — that  is  in 
South  Carolina  rock  from  the  phosphatic  beds  of  that 
state — in  what  are  known  as  superphosphates,  and  in 
the  various  kinds  of  plain  bone  meal  and  bone  ash  or 
ground  bone  "flours"  that  are  on  the  market. 

The  work  of  these  three  elements  is  divided  of 
course,  but  generally  speaking  nitrogen  promotes  lux- 
uriant growth  of  lea'f  and  branch,  hence  is  the  greatest 
stimulant  to  vegetables,  especially  those  of  which  we 
eat  the  tops  or  leafy  portions;  potash  builds  up  and 

33 


THE  GARDEN  PRIMER 


strengthens  wood  and  fruit,  while  phosphoric  acid 
seems  to  be  the  especial  food  which  flowering  plants, 
whether  shrubby  or  herbaceous,  most  appreciate. 

Learn  to  watch  your  garden  and  find  out  from 
the  plants  and  the  way  they  grow  just  what  it  is  that 
they  need.  Do  not  for  instance  give  nitrogen  when  top 
growth  is  rank  and  luxuriant,  but  fruit  of  poor  quality 
and  not  abundant,  for  such  a  condition  probably  means 
that  trees  are  starving  for  potash.  Of  course  all  the 
elements  should  be  present  in  order  to  get  the  best 
results — but  frequently  it  is  necessary  to  supply  only 
one  in  order  to  make  the  proportions  right,  as  already 
suggested.  The  trick  is  to  find  out  which  one. 

It  is  largely  a  matter  of  common  sense,  once  you 
know  what  is  what — and  without  knowing  this  no 
amount  of  directions  will  be  any  real  help.  It  is 
necessary  to  realize  what  is  going  on  down  in  the  ground 
where  the  roots  are  doing  their  work — how  they  are 
gathering  up  one  substance  and  another  in  the  tiniest 
and  most  minute  particles — in  order  to  realize  that  a 
very  little  too  much  of  one  thing  or  a  very  little  defi- 
ciency of  the  other  will  actually  work  ill  to  a  plant — or 
well. 

Finally,  there  is  one  other  thing  about  the  soil 
that  should  here  be  mentioned,  partly  for  the  reason  that 
it  is  so  generally  overlooked  in  all  that  is  said  or  written 
about  soil,  good  or  bad,  and  partly  because  it  is  interest- 
ing. It  is  a  phase  of  soil  fertility  that  does  not  enter 
perhaps  into  the  beginner's  gardening,  but  who  can  tell 
what  moment  the  beginner,  inspired  by  success  and 

34 


FERTILIZING  AND  FERTILIZERS 

other  things,  is  going  to  branch  out  and  become  a  real 
scientific  agriculturist  who  wants  to  know  everything? 
And  then  besides,  who  can  know  too  much,  even  though 
he  is  but  a  beginner? 

It  is  only  recently  comparatively,  that  investigators 
have  been  led  to  believe  that  plants  give  off  certain 
organic  substances  during  the  processes  of  growth 
which,  accumulating  in  the  soil,  are  harmful  to  the 
successive  growth  of  plants  of  the  same  kind.  This 
may  be  the  reason,  or  one  of  the  reasons,  why  the  bene- 
fits of  crop  rotation  are  so  marked :  the  soil  is  freed  from 
the  toxic  matter  emanating  from  one  species  in  the 
three  or  four  years  during  which  other  crops  are 
grown  upon  it.  Sometimes — not  often  to  be  sure, 
but  sometimes — poor  and  sterile  soil  may  be  poor 
and  sterile  because  thus  poisoned. 

But  that  is  a  big  subject  and  such  a  condition 
will  hardly  occur  in  even  a  very  advanced  beginner's 
garden.  So  one  need  not  to  go  into  the  matter  at 
first.  However,  remember  it  if  later  experience  ever 
brings  you  the  baffling  problem  of  a  soil  that  con- 
sistently and  obstinately  produces  only  failure  under 
every  kind  of  manipulation.  There  are  such — soils 
that  will  not  yield  nourishment  enough  to  sustain  plant 
life — but  happily  they  are  being  studied  and  experi- 
mented on  until  the  reasons  for  their  sulkiness  stand 
small  chance  of  remaining  secret  much  longer.  And 
every  State  Agricultural  Experiment  Station  is  ready 
to  give  anyone  who  may  ask  all  the  information  which 
they  have  acquired  on  the  subject — or  to  go  farther 

35 


THE  GARDEN  PRIMER 


and  take  up  the  individual  problem  by  making  an 
analysis  of  a  soil  specimen  submitted  to  them,  and  to 
advise  according  to  that  analysis. 

It  is  decidedly  the  part  of  wisdom  to  apply  for  this 
expert  advice  when  an  unusual  condition  exists;  and 
such  application  is  not  only  encouraged  but  it  is  urged 
by  the  Department,  for  of  course  each  new  problem 
means  further  opportunity  for  research  and  therefore 
a  greater  possibility  of  important  discovery. 


36 


ts. 

n'  O- 

a  8. 

i: 

il. 

n,     3 


OJ    A 
r* 

r* 

P 
II 

3 


8 


Well  pruned  trees  enhance  the  beauty  of  any  lawn,  and  add  greatly  to 

•the    attractiveness   of   the    home   grounds.      Every    garden 

beginner  should   bear  this  in   mind,  and  also  that 

pruning  in  time  saves  nine  trees  out  of 

ten    from    early    decay 


IX 

PRUNING 

NOWHERE  is  the  struggle  for  existence  keener 
and  fiercer  than  in  the  vegetable  kingdom. 
Thousands  of  seedlings  sprout  for  every  one  that 
reaches  maturity,  and  everywhere  along  the  way,  from 
root  to  branch  and  fruit,  there  is  the  same  lavish 
extravagance  in  Nature. 

This  is  the  chief  reason  for  Pruning,  broadly 
speaking;  the  principle  of  it  is  always  to  relieve  the 
plant  by  reducing  this  struggle.  For,  of  course,  when 
its  efforts  are  constantly  strained  to  the  utmost  in  just 
keeping  alive,  it  cannot  produce  flowers  or  fruit  in 
abundance  nor  of  very  high  quality.  And  similarly 
when  there  are  too  many  branches,  none  can  be  as 
strong  and  leafy  as  they  should,  for  all  are  insuffi- 
ciently nourished. 

The  process  of  pruning  is  an  operation  which 
has  three  objects  in  view,  viz: 

1.  Pruning  proper,  that  is  removing  parts  of  the 
plant  for  the  purpose  of  producing  better  growth  in  the 
remaining  parts. 

2.  Training,    or   arranging   the   branches   of   a 
plant   to   conform   to   certain   directions   of    growth, 

37 


THE  GARDEN  PRIMER. 


attended    nearly    always   with    pruning    proper    or 
trimming. 

3.  Trimming,  pruning  the  branches  of  a  plant  for 
the  purpose  of  ultimately  bringing  the  plant  to  a 
preconceived  shape,  or  artificial  form. 

Thus  the  branches  of  a  lanky  plant  may  be  (i) 
pruned  to  give  it  better  growth,  (2)  trained  to  make  them 
spread  in  the  desired  direction,  and,  later,  (3)  trimmed 
to  make  them  conform  to  the  shape  it  is  desired  that  the 
plant  should  assume,  or  retain. 

Plants,  unlike  animals,  do  not  suffer  from  the  shock 
of  amputation,  for  pruning  is  just  that, — a  sort  of 
plant-surgery  as  it  were, — when  it  is  properly  done. 
Indeed,  properly  done,  it  is  an  operation  which  greatly 
promotes  the  vigor  of  the  plant  subjected  to  it.  And 
a  little  pruning  every  year  is  like  the  stitch  in  time, 
for  the  destruction  of  an  ambitious  shoot  as  soon  as  it 
starts  is  far  easier  on  the  tree  and  the  gardener,  too,  than 
the  laborious  task  of  sawing  through  a  good-sized 
limb  after  it  has  had  time  to  mature. 

In  the  first  place  there  are  two  things  about  form 
to  remember  in  pruning; — one,  applying  to  trees  espe- 
cially, is  that  leading  branches  must  never  be  allowed 
to  spring  from  the  same  point  on  the  trunk — or  from 
opposite  the  same  point  is  perhaps  clearer — while  the 
other,  applicable  to  every  sort  of  plant,  is  that,  generally 
speaking,  the  outer  shoots  or  branches  should  be  left 
and  the  inner  ones  cut  away. 

In  the  first  instance  the  tree  is  weakened  structurally 
and  will  split  more  readily  under  stress  of  wind  or  ice — 

38 


PRUNING 


or  fruit — when  its  branches  diverge  at  just  the  same 
level,  forming  a  sharp  crotch  or  Y;  in  the  second,  a 
plant  becomes  choked  and  top  heavy  if  inner  growth  is 
constantly  encouraged  and  the  branches  rub  and 
interfere,  injuring  each  other. 

And  then  there  is  a  very  important  thing  that 
does  not  conce  n  form  at  all,  but  does  concern 
flowers — consequently  fruit — vitally,  and,  therefore, 
must  be  always  remembered  and  considered  when 
there  is  any  clipping  to  be  done.  This  is  the  fact 
that  every  tree  or  shrub  or  vine  has  its  own  little 
personal  peculiarity  about  flowers  and  the  manner  of 
producing  them — and  produces  them  usually  only  on 
wood  of  a  certain  age — sometimes  one  year,  sometimes 
two,  and  sometimes  even  more.  So  it  is  always  necessary 
to  know  the  peculiarity  of  any  plant  in  question  in  this 
respect  before  venturing  to  lop  off  a  branch,  else  an 
entire  season's  product  may  be  literally  nipped  in  the 
bud. 

Of  fruit  trees  the  apple  and  pear  bear  on  "spurs" 
of  old  wood  that  may  be  anywhere  along  the  branches — 
but  peaches  are  always  borne  on  wood  of  the  previous 
season's  growth.  Trimming  off  the  annual  shoots 
will  therefore  sacrifice  the  fruit  of  the  latter  but  not  of 
the  former;  while  "heading  in" — that  is,  removing  the 
ends  of  the  branches  with  their  growing  terminal  buds — 
being  a  process  that  encourages  the  growth  of  lateral 
buds  that  are  waiting  for  just  this  to  happen,  into 
shoots  or  young  branches,  of  course  increases  the 
amount  of  new,  therefore  of  fruit  producing,  wood. 

39 


THE  GARDEN  PRIMER 


Of  flowering  shrubs  the  hydrangea  and  the  lilac 
afford  much  the  same  contrast  as  the  apple  and  peach 
among  fruit  trees.  Hydrangeas  bloom  on  wood  of  the 
season's  growth,  lilacs  on  wood  of  the  previous  season. 
The  former  may  be  pruned  very  early  in  the  spring 
therefore  without  danger  of  destroying  the  blossoms,  but 
the  latter  should  be  gone  over  with  the  knife  only  im- 
mediately after  flowering.  This  gives  them  the  chance 
to  grow  branches  for  the  next  season  and  to  stow 
them  with  flower  buds  before  frost  interferes. 

It  is,  of  course,  hardly  possible  hi  this  limited 
space  to  name  a  very  complete  list  of  trees  and  shrubs, 
with  their  peculiarities  in  regard  to  bloom,  but  some 
of  the  most  commonly  planted  are  included  below. 

TREE   FRUITS 

Apple.  Fruit  borne  on  old  spurs — prune  in  spring, 
or  after  the  fruit  is  gathered. 

Pear.  Fruit  borne  on  old  spurs — prune  sparingly 
in  spring,  or  after  the  fruit  is  gathered. 

Plum.  Fruit  mostly  on  spurs,  but  in  some  varieties 
on  both  spurs  and  annual  growth — prune  in  spring. 

Cherry.  Similar  to  plum — prune  in  spring  or 
after  harvest. 

Peach — Fruit  borne  near  base  of  previous  year's 
shoots — prune  after  harvest. 

SMALL  FRUITS 

Blackberry.  Fruit  borne  on  canes  of  previous 
season's  growth — cut  old  canes  out  after  fruiting, 
cut  young  canes  back  as  soon  as  two  feet  high — cut 
laterals  on  these  sparingly  at  tip  in  spring,  or  not  at  alL 

40 


PRUNING 


Raspberry.  Same  as  blackberry;  spring  pruning 
is  only  to  thin  the  fruit;  all  cutting  back  should  be 
done  the  previous  season. 

Currant.  Fruit  borne  on  both  old  and  young 
wood — the  best  on  base  of  i  year  shoots  springing  from 
i  year  spurs;  have  no  wood  over  three  years  old. 

Grapes.  Borne  on  wood  of  present  season  which 
rises  from  wood  of  previous  season;  fall  or  winter  prun- 
ing is  best. 

FLOWERING   SHRUBS 

Roses.  Flowers  borne  on  new  wood — prune  out 
old  wood  and  weak  shoots  after  flowering — or  cut  back 
before  life  shows  in  spring  from  |  to  |  of  bush. 

Forsythia.  Flowers  borne  on  old  wood — prune 
immediately  after  flowering. 

Hibiscus.  On  the  season's  shoots — prune  fall  or 
early  spring. 

Honeysuckle.    See  Lonicera. 

Hydrangea.  Borne  on  the  season's  shoots — prune 
fall  or  early  spring. 

Lilac.     See  Syringa. 

Lonicera.  Usually  on  season's  shoots — safest  to 
prune  immediately  after  flowering  however,  as  some 
varieties  bloom  very  early. 

Philadelphus.  (Commonly  called  Syringa.)  Borne 
on  old  wood — prune  immediately  after  flowering. 

Spirxa.  (Shrubby  varieties.)  On  old  wood — 
prune  sparingly  after  flowering. 

Syringa.  On  last  year's  wood — prune  imme- 
diately after  flowering. 

4i 


THE  GARDEN  PRIMER 


Viburnum.    On  old  wood — prune  after  flowering. 

Weigela.     On  old  wood — prune  after  flowering. 

Clematis.  On  season's  shoots — cut  down  in  winter 
or  early  spring. 

Evergreen  hedges.  Prune  in  June,  trimming  just 
enough  to  keep  the  chosen  form. 

The  final  word  in  pruning  however  must  always  be 
"restraint. "  Dead  and  weak  wood  should  be  cut  from 
shrubs,  superfluous  branches  which  crowd  a  tree  should 
be  taken  away — but  only  a  little  should  ever  need  doing 
at  one  time  or  season.  And  only  a  little  will  need  to 
be  done  at  one  time,  if  that  little  is  attended  to  as  each 
year  brings  it.  Great  branches  of  trees  cannot  be 
removed  with  impunity.  Pruning  should  be  practiced 
annually,  from  the  period  of  young  growth;  the 
resulting  wounds  will  then  be  small,  and  knot  holes 
will  not  open  themselves  to  the  ravages  of  fungous 
plant  diseases  and  of  decay. 

As  to  the  manner  and  fashion  of  severing  a  branch 
or  a  shoot  there  is  not  a  great  deal  to  say.  Not  but  that 
many  wrong  ways  are  in  evidence — but  the  right  way 
is  simply  explained.  Large  limbs  should  always  be 
cut  as  close  to  the  main  trunk  from  which  they  spring 
as  it  is  possible  to  lay  a  saw — and  the  cut  should  always 
be  parallel  with  the  main  trunk  and  not  at  right  angles 
to  the  branch  taken  away.  No  way  but  this  is  right, 
no  matter  who  practices  it.  In  the  case  of  very  large 
and  heavy  limbs — which  ought  never  to  be  cut  down 
unless  there  is  a  reason  absolutely  imperative — it  is 

42 


This    illustrates   the    manner   of   pruning    the 
branches  of  shrubs    (Privet  in  this  in- 
stance),  to   induce   bushy   growth. 
By  such  pruning  three  branches 
will    result    where    but 
one    grew    before 


This   illustration   shows  a   Geranium   plant  that  has  been 

pruned.    The  cuttings— "slips" — have  been  started 

in  other  pots  for  new  plants 


PRUNING 


best  to  remove  the  limb  with  two  preliminary  cuts, 
trimming  the  stub  down  to  the  proper  level  of  the  trunk 
afterwards.  This  prevents  any  splitting  down  of 
the  limb  as  it  gives  way  and  makes  a  much  neater  and 
better  job. 

The  first  of  these  two  cuts  should  be  made  from  the 
under  side  of  the  limb  up,  about  five  or  six  inches  from 
its  rise  on  the  trunk ;  this  should  extend  more  than  half 
way  through  the  limb.  Then  half  an  inch  nearer  the  tree 
trunk  make  the  second  cut,  from  the  upper  side  of  the 
limb  down;  and  the  branch  will  fall  to  the  ground  without 
splintering  or  tearing  the  bark  in  the  least.  Then  lay 
the  saw  flat  against  the  main  trunk  and  take  off  the 
stub.  This  levels  the  surface  and  prepares  for  the  heal- 
ing process  which  Nature  will  immediately  take  up. 

Shoots  and  small  branches  should  always  be  severed 
just  above  a  bud,  as  near  to  it  as  possible  yet  far  enough 
away  to  avoid  injuring  it.  And  in  plants  on  which  the 
buds  alternate,  an  outward  setting  bud  should  be  the  one 
left  at  the  top  of  a  pruned  branch;  in  this  way  an  out- 
ward growing  branch  will  be  assured — and  that  is  the 
thing  to  be  aimed  at. 

All  plant  growth  is  carried  on  by  the  terminal  buds — 
the  buds  at  the  end  of  the  branches  and  twigs.  Back 
of  these  and  ranged  on  either  side  of  the  stem  or  branch, 
usually  at  regular  intervals,  are  what  are  called  the 
Mteral  buds.  From  these,  new  branches  spring — but 
only  from  comparatively  few  of  them.  Thus  there  are 
always  a  lot  of  seemingly  useless  buds  ranked  along 
every  main  stem. 

43 


THE  GARDEN  PRIMER 


But  far  from  being  useless  these  are  Nature's  won- 
derful reserve,  held  back  for  weeks  or  months  or  maybe 
years  as  the  case  may  be,  yet  always  in  readiness  to 
spring  to  the  rescue  when  the  plant's  normal  leaf  surface 
is  taken  away.  For  leaf  surface  cannot  be  reduced — 
the  proportion  between  it  and  root  surface  must  be 
maintained.  With  wonderful  intelligence  and  patience 
they  wait,  therefore — these  reserve  buds — until  injury 
comes  to  the  terminal  bud.  Then  they  fairly  leap  into 
activity  in  their  haste  to  supply  the  loss. 

It  must  always  be  remembered,  therefore,  that 
pruning  at  branch  ends  stimulates  excessive  growth  of 
shoots  up  to  a  certain  point — beyond  this  point  the 
victim  succumbs — and  that  the  way  to  thin  shrubs  is 
to  look  beyond  the  twigs  that  are  too  numerous  down  to 
the  branch  or  stalk  whence  they  spring — to  go  right 
down  to  the  ground  and  cut  out  old  wood. 


44 


This  illustrates  a  comoination  of  good  and   bad   pruning. 

Though  the  wounds  have  been  made  close  enough  to 

the  trunk  and  are  healing  properly,  the  branches 

are    so    trimmed    that    they    have    not    been 

allowed   to   spread   sufficiently,   and   thus 

the    tree    is    headed    too    high 


The  permanent  hotbed  when  the  weather 

permits  removing  the  sash  through 

part  of  the  day 


Hotbed  soil  showing  bed  before  manure  is  worked   in    (to 

left  of  bar),  and  after  the  manure  has  been 

worked  under  (to  right  of  bar) 


X 

THE  HOTBED  AND  THE  COLDFRAME 

T7VERY  garden  beginner  is  eager  to  begin  at  once — 
JC->  to  have  things  growing  as  soon  as  possible — and 
so,  because  a  hotbed  will  advance  the  season  anywhere 
from  eight  to  ten  weeks,  he  will  early  wish  to  learn 
something  about  making  one.  They  are  simple  enough, 
and  plain  directions,  carefully  heeded,  will  bring  success 
even  to  the  novice.  Do  not  hesitate  to  try  one  there- 
fore— you  will  surely  resolve  never  to  do  without 
such  a  simple  and  wonderfully  useful  aid  to  the  pleasure 
of  planting. 

A  hotbed  is  really  a  forcing  house  on  a  very  small 
scale — a  place  where  plants  may  be  grown  in  advance 
of  the  open  season  by  means  of  heat  artificially  supplied 
to  them.  This  heat  may  be  carried  underneath  the 
bed  by  steam  or  hot  water  pipes,  but  that  is  the 
bothersome  and  expensive  way;  or  it  may  be  furnished 
by  placing  the  bed  upon  a  mound  of  fermenting  manure. 
This  is  the  easiest  and  usual  way,  and  the  only  one 
that  need  concern  the  beginner. 

Fresh  manure  from  the  stables  of  grain-fed  horses, 
mixed  with  one-third  bedding  straw  (this  latter  length- 
ens the  heating  period),  should  first  be  piled  in 

45 


THE  GARDEN  PRIMER 


the  protected  spot  chosen  for  the  bed's  location — a 
place  where  the  north  winds  cannot  reach.  If  the 
manure  is  dry,  sprinkle  it  with  tepid  water  to  start 
decomposition. 


Cross-section  diagram  of  a  Hotbed. 

Steam  will  begin  to  rise  from  the  pile  in  from  three 
to  five  days.  As  soon  as  it  appears  have  it  well  worked 
over,  turning  the  outside  inside  and  bringing  the  inside 
to  the  surface — then  let  it  alone  to  warm  up  again. 
This  will  take  two  or  three  days  more — the  presence 
of  the  steam  will  indicate  that  it  is  ready,  when  the 
work  may  proceed. 

Spread  the  manure  evenly  over  an  area  large 
enough  to  give  a  full  two-foot  margin  all  around  outside 
the  sash  or  sashes.  Make  it  18  inches  deep — this  for 
the  latitude  of  New  York  City;  have  it  proportionately 
deeper  and  broader  in  colder  localities — and  pack  it 
firmly.  On  this  flat  pile  set  the  frame  to  carry  the  sash. 

This  frame  is  a  bottomless  and  topless  box  made 
of  two-inch  planks;  it  should  slope  on  top  from  a 
height  of  about  12  inches  at  the  front  to  18  or  24  inches 
at  the  back,  with  the  sides  slanted  to  conform  to  the 

46 


THE  HOTBED  AND  THE  COLDFRAME 

slope.  Its  ground  dimensions  are  regulated  by  the 
size  of  the  sash  it  is  to  have  as  its  top  or  covering — so, 
as  a  matter  of  fact,  the  first  thing  to  do  in  making  a  hot- 
bed is  to  get  the  sash. 

Any  old  sash  will  do,  whatever  its  shape  or  size. 
Glazed  for  a  window,  it  will  doubtless  leak  when  put 
to  this  more  trying  use,  but  if  it  is  reasonably  tight 
the  plants  under  it  will  not  suffer.  Lacking  a  discarded 
sash,  regulation  hotbed  sash  will,  of  course,  be  neces- 
sary, but  these  are  inexpensive.  They  are  glazed 
differently,  however,  from  the  ordinary  window-sash — 
and  the  way  of  doing  it  ought  to  be  among  the  gardener's 
accomplishments,  for  breakage  is  apt  to  occur. 


This  shows  the  construction  of  Hotbed  frame  to  receive 

sash. 

The  bars  of  these  sash  run  lengthwise  only,  as 
you  will  see  from  the  accompanying  illustration,  and 
are  "rabbeted"  to  receive  the  glass.  Spread  soft  putty 
along  this  rabbet,  then,  starting  at  the  bottom  of  the 
sash,  press  the  first  pane  down  into  the  putty;  fasten 
it  with  brads — the  glazing  points  not  being  strong 
enough.  Let  the  pane  lap  over  the  wood  at  the  bottom 
rail  half  an  inch,  forming  a  watershed,  and  lap  each 

47 


THE  GARDEN  PRIMER 


succeeding  pane  over  the  preceding  one  by  half  an 
inch,  in  the  way  shingles  are  overlapped  in  roofing. 
A  brad  under  each  lower  corner  will  keep  the  panes 
from  slipping  down. 

With  the  hotbed  placed  upon  the  packed  manure 
(the  back  or  high  end  to  the  north  always),  proceed 
to  bank  up  on  the  outside  with  more  manure — quite  up 
to  the  level  of  the  lower  or  front  edge.  Then  spread 
the  soil,  which  is  to  be  the  actual  seed  bed,  inside, 
making  it  from  four  to  eight  inches  deep  according  to 
what  you  intend  to  grow.  The  shallower  depth  is 
quite  sufficient  for  salad  or  for  flower  plants — only 
radishes  and  deeper  growing  root  crops  require  the 
deeper  bed.  The  planting  soil  of  the  hotbed  should 
be  rich  and  soft  and  friable — good  garden  earth  with 
a  mixture  of  sand  is  best. 

Put  the  sash  on  the  bed,  and  let  it  heat  up  the 
earth  inside.  It  will  be  hot  for  three  or  four  days — 
much  too  hot,  at  first,  for  any  planting.  Keep  a 
thermometer  inside  the  frame;  do  not  begin  planting 
until  it  drops  to  90°  F.  or  less. 

As  the  plants  must  remain  in  the  bed  for  two  months 
it  will  be  necessary  to  thin  out  the  seedlings  to  make 
room  therein.  This  should  be  done  as  soon  as  they 
appear  in  order  to  give  the  ones  spared  plenty  of  room 
to  develop  right  from  the  start.  Some  of  the  plants 
may  later  be  transferred  to  the  coldframe  if  it  is  too 
early  for  them  to  go  out  into  the  garden  and  the  hot- 
bed becomes  overcrowded. 

48 


The   garden    beginner  will   do  well   to  fit   up 

a  convenient  work  bench  somewhere, 

for  there  is  a  deal  of  puttering  to  be 

done  at  seed  time,  and  when 

transplanting     begins 


After  you   have   prepared  the   soil    in 
hotbed    or  coldframe   mark   off 
your  planting   rows  care- 
fully and  neatly 


THE  HOTBED  AND  THE  COLDFRAME 

The  hotbed  should  be  watered  with  a  sprinkler, 
keeping  the  soil  just  moist  enough  to  crumble  apart 
slowly  after  being  squeezed  in  the  hand,  as  described  in 
the  chapter  on  the  soil.  Be  sure  that  the  sash  is  always 
in  place  after  you  have  tended  the  bed — forgetting  to 
replace  it  will  result  in  plant  tragedy.  And  be  sure 
to  ventilate  the  hotbed  on  warm  days  by  raising  the 
sash  ever  so  little,  or  by  slipping  it  down  in  the  middle 
of  the  day, — between  11.30  and  1.30,  when  the  sun  is 
shining  directly  on  the  glass. 

Till  the  soil  of  the  hotbed  as  you  would  any- 
where in  the  garden — only  do  not  keep  the  sash 
off  for  any  length  of  time.  Reach  under  to  do  the 
work.  Nasty  little  green  things  that  look  like  lice 
will  probably  appear — beastly,  soft,  smushy  aphids 
they  are.  They  revel  in  hotbeds,  but  a  solution  made 
of  one- quarter  pound  of  white  soap  dissolved  in  a 
little  boiling  water  and  then  reduced  in  strength  by  add- 
ing five  gallons  of  water,  used  tepid  in  a  sprayer,  will 
make  short  work  of  them.  They  will  come  again,  no 
doubt — but  vigilance  will  save  the  crop  from  their  devas- 
tating armies.  Fortunately  they  die  easily — almost  as 
easily  as  they  come.  They  are  often  on  the  under  side  of 
leaves  and  unsuspected  until  the  leaf  curls — and  then 
unseen  because  of  their  color.  Keep  a  sharp  watch 
for  them.  Other  insect  and  fungous  pests  and  how  to 
get  rid  of  them  will  be  taken  up  in  a  later  chapter. 

A  mat  of  straw  or  several  thicknesses  of  burlap 
should  be  provided  .to  cover  the  sash  on  cold 
nights — and  it  is  seldom  wise  to  build  the  bed  before 

49 


THE  GARDEN  PRIMER 


the  last  week  of  February  or  the  early  part  of  March. 
If  ready  by  March  loth  you  will  find  it  early  enough 
for  all  practical  purposes — and  the  plants  in  it  will  be 
big  fellows  by  the  time  the  ground  is  warm  enough  out- 
side to  receive  them. 

Unless  the  space  it  occupies  is  needed  during  the 
summer  the  bed  may  be  left  and  used  for  a  coldframe 
in  the  fall,  for  lettuce  or  other  salad  plants. 

The  coldframe  differs  from  the  hotbed  in  that  it 
is  constructed  without  an  underpit  of  heat-producing 
materials,  and  is  intended  merely  to  provide  greater 
protection  from  cold  and  winds  for  growing  plants. 
It  is  made  of  a  board  frame  set  on  top  of  the  ground, 
not  in-sunken  like  the  hotbed,  but  like  a  hotbed 
it  has  a  protective  sash  over  the  top  to  cover  it. 


Usual  form  of  Coldframe. 

Its  usefulness  in  the  beginner's  garden  can  scarcely 
be  overestimated,  for  by  having  a  coldframe  at  hand 
the  garden-maker  may  be  sure  of  early  salad  plants  and, 
in  a  small  way,  be  far  in  advance  with  melons  and 
cucumbers. 

50 


THE  HOTBED  AND  THE  COLDFRAME 

Likewise  the  coldframe  serves  the  garden-maker 
as  a  winter  protection  for  tender  plants  that  will  not 
stand  wintering  in  the  North,  while  very  often  it  hap- 
pens that  the  hotbed  becomes  overcrowded.  In  this 
event  the  coldframe  is  an  especially  valuable  adjunct 
to  its  usefulness  inasmuch  as  the  plants  from  the 
thinned-out  hotbed  need  not  be  lost,  but  instead 
may  be  saved  by  being  set  into  the  coldframe  for 
intermediary  growth  against  the  time  when  the  natural 
outdoor  garden  is  ready  to  receive  them. 


Coldframe  with   double  sash. 

As  their  cold-proof  qualities  is  their  reason  for 
being,  these  coldframes,  no  matter  how  simple,  must 
be  carefully,  constructed  in  order  that  the  parts  where 
there  is  any  joinery  may  be  weather-proof.  The 
accompanying  illustration  will  show,  at  once,  the  ^ort 
of  a  structure  the  garden  beginner  may  require  for 
his  initial  experiments  with  early-raising.  Not  only 
will  the  hotbed  and  coldframe  serve  the  grower  of 
early  vegetables,  but  will  also  promote  the  success  of 
the  flower  garden,  and  make  possible  earlier  flowers, 

Si 


THE  GARDEN  PRIMER 


and  the  bloom  of  certain  perennials  their  first  season 
that  could  not  be  accomplished  without  recourse  to 
this  phase  of  gardening. 


XI 
GARDEN  PESTS  AND  SPRAYING 

EVERY  beginner  is  apt  to  meet  the  discouragements 
that  come  with  the  appearance  of  insect  and 
fungous  pests  in  nearly  every  garden  at  some  time. 
You  may  wonder  why  your  lovely  flowers  or  your  fat 
vegetables,  your  stately  Hollyhocks  or  your  practical 
potatoes  seem,  of  a  sudden,  not  only  to  stop  growing 
but  actually  to  wither  or  decay.  You  will  have  to  look 
closely  at  their  leaves  and  search  around  their  roots  for 
the  trouble  that  is  brewing.  You  will  find  that  insects 
or  fungous  growths  have  appeared  to  disturb  their 
peace.  Indeed  almost  every  plant  under  cultivation 
is  subject  to  some  blight  or  pest  from  which,  in  its  wild 
state,  the  plant  has  been  free. 

However,  there  is  now  hardly  a  single  plant  ail- 
ment that  we  are  either  unfamiliar  with  or  unable  to 
cope  with,  wherefore  liquid  spraying,  or  the  application 
of  liquid  fungicides  and  insecticides  to  affected  trees, 
shrubs,  vines,  and  plants,  has  become  an  expedient  of 
the  greatest  importance  to  everyone  having  a  lawn  or 
garden.  It  is  a  disheartening  thing  to  see  the  plants  you 
have  worked  over  and  nurtured  turn  sere-leaved  out 
of  season,  droop  and  die,  when  you  have  looked  forward 

S3 


THE  GARDEN  PRIMER 


to  their  mature  beauty  and  usefulness  with  all  the  hope 
the  heart  of  a  garden-maker  can  hold. 

Fungous  plant-diseases  are  quite  as  much  to  be 
dreaded  as  attacks  from  insect  foes  upon  plant  life. 
We  can  hardly  cure  their  mischief,  but,  to  a  great  extent, 
we  can  prevent  their  occurrence  by  spraying  and,  in 
some  measure,  check  the  spread  of  blight  or  anthracnose 
likewise. 

As  only  a  microscope  will  disclose  to  us  just  where 
the  minute  fungi  spores  are  lodging  themselves,  it  be- 
comes necessary  to  prevent  the  possibility  of  their  ap- 
pearing at  all,  even  if,  in  seasons  past,  our  trees  and 
shrubs  and  vines  and  plants  seem  to  have  been  free  from 
disease.  Not  only  must  they  be  sprayed  once  but  often, 
as  the  effect  of  liquid  spraying  (which  has  great  advan- 
tage over  dust  spraying)  is  cumulative.  The  first  spray- 
ing may  not  reach  tiny  spores  tucked  away  in  budding 
portions  of  the  plant,  which,  when  these  come  into 
branching  proportions  then  present  the  disease  upon 
a  surface  that  must  be  reached  by  subsequent  spray 
application.  Nevertheless  all  the  spraying  in  the  world 
will  be  rendered  futile  if  your  neighbor's  trees,  shrubs 
vines  or  plants  are  diseased  and  still  do  not  receive  like 
attention.  Therefore  one  of  the  first  things  to  do  is  to 
prevail  on  him  to  have  his  spraying  done  coincident 
with  yours,  and  if  he  remains  indifferent  to  the  matter 
it  is  far  better  for  you  to  bear  the  expense  of  doing  it 
for  him  than  to  subject  your  trees  to  danger  from  con- 
tamination. Indeed,  the  matter  of  communal  effort 
in  this  direction  is  of  such  importance  that  many 

54 


GARDEN  PESTS  AND  SPRAYING 


neighborhood  societies  of  garden  owners  have  been 
formed,  and  out  of  the  common  treasury  the  expenses  of 


Types  of  chewing  insects. 

neighborhood  spraying  have  been  borne,  thus  establish- 
ing one  of  the  most  helpful  cooperative  movements 
known  for  the  maintenance  of  fair  areas. 

Insect  pests  may  be  divided  into  two  general 
classes  of  external  feeders — insects  that  injure  the 
plants  by  biting  or  gnawing  (these  must  be  got  rid 
of  by  poisoning  their  food),  and  insects  that  destroy 


Types  of  sucking  insects. 

55 


THE  GARDEN  PRIMER 


plant  life  by  sucking  the  juices  of  the  plants  (these 
latter  must  be  met  openly  and  killed  by  penetrating  ex- 
ternal poisons,  fume  suffocation,  etc.,  as  they  pay  no 
attention  to  mere  surface  poisons). 

In  the  first  class  we  have  the  Flea-beetle,  the 
Potato-bug,  the  Cabbage-worm,  the  Cinch-bug,  and 
various  other  beetles  and  injurious  larvae,  also  Grass- 
hoppers. Among  the  second  class  are  to  be  found  the 
moth  parents  of  the  Cut-worm,  the  Tassel-worm,  the 
white  Grub-worm's  moth,  the  Onion-maggot,  Maple- 
borer  and  Rose-bug. 

Spraying  is  easily  accomplished  even  on  the  small- 
est premises.  Excellent  and  inexpensive  apparatus  is 
offered  in  the  market  (your  florist  or  your  nurseryman 
can  always  supply  you  with  reliable  manufacturers1 
addresses).  The  pump  should  be  strongly  made,  and 
one  nozzle  will  be  sufficient.  You  will  probably  have 
to  renew  the  spraying  hose  every  year,  if  you  have  much 
work  to  be  done.  If  you  have  a  large  garden  you  can 
rig  up  a  barrel  on  wheels,  for  moving  the  Bordeaux 
Mixture  or  other  arsenate  sprays  around,  and  fit  it 
with  pump  hose  and  nozzle  at  a  total  cost  of  ten 
dollars. 

For  a  small  garden  a  hand  sprayer  costing,  say,  four 
dollars,  is  sufficient.  The  knapsack  style  of  sprayer, 
carried  by  straps  on  the  shoulders,  is  especially  good 
and  will  throw  a  spray  fully  fifteen  feet.  This  can  be 
used  to  equal  advantage  on  fruits  and  vegetables. 
With  heavier  sprays,  such  as  Paris  green  and  Lime- 
sulphur  wash,  agitation  is  necessary  to  keep  the  com- 

56 


. 


cr  w 
A 
(o  at 


3   — 
5» 


Because    Hollyhocks   and    many   other   plants 
are  subject  to  plant  diseases  and  insect 
pests  the  garden  beginner  need  not 
be  frightened  away  when  such 
lovely  flowers  as  these   may 
be    brought    to    maturity 
with  very  little  trou- 
ble   after    all 


GARDEN  PESTS  AND  SPRAYING 

pound  properly  mixed,  and  many  mixtures  should  be 
strained  before  using  thus  for  Lime-sulphur  a  strainer 
of  not  more  than  twenty  meshes  to  the  inch  is  necessary 
(a  smaller  mesh  would  fill  up).  The  nozzles  must  be 
kept  from  clogging. 


Bucket    Hand-Sprayer   and    Knapsack    Hand-Sprayer. 

In  spraying,  as  high  a  pressure  as  possible  is  ad- 
visable, as  the  mist-like  spray  produced  thereby  reaches 
every  part  of  the  plant.  Indeed  thoroughness  in  spray- 
ing is  one  of  the  essentials  to  successfully  combating 
plant  pests,  for  any  hit-or-miss  program  renders  the 
final  result  of  little  lasting  value. 

Timeliness  in  spraying  is  a  matter  of  the  utmost 
importance.  The  garden-maker  should  make  his 
preparations  early,  and  from  time  to  time  study  up  the 
subject  so  he  may  be  forewarned  as  well  as  forehanded. 
One  good  way  to  keep  posted  on  such  matters  is  to 
study  the  catalogues  of  manufacturers  and  by  reading 

57 


THE  GARDEN  PRIMER 


agricultural  bulletins,  as  year  by  year  spraying  appara- 
tus is  improved  and  simplified,  and  many  valuable 
spraying  formulae  are  produced  to  combat  with  success 
new  plant  pests.  The  accompanying  table  is,  for  all 
general  purposes,  a  safe  calendar  of  spraying  operations 
to  use  as  a  guide. 

The  following  recipes  are  some  of  the  more  common 
ones  in  general  use: 

INSECTICIDES 

1.  Ar senate  of  Lead.    Use  4  oz.  to  5  gals,  of  water. 

2.  Paris    Green.     Use   i   part   Paris    green    to 
5  gals,  water. 

3.  Kerosene  Emulsion.    J  Ib.  soap  dissolved  in 
i  gal.  boiling  water.     Add  2  gals,  kerosene;  agitate  5 
minutes.     Dilute  a  dozen  times  before  applying  with 
spray. 

4.  Lime-sulphur.      Use    unslaked   lime    5    Ibs., 
flowers  of  sulphur  3!  Ibs.,  salt  i  Ib.,  water  12  gals. 

5.  Arsenite  of  Lime.    Use  white  arsenic  i  Ibs., 
Crystal  sal  soda  4  Ibs.  (or  if  of  the  anhydrous  sal 
soda,  only  2  Ibs.),  to  i  gal.  of  water. 

6.  Ammoniacal  Copper  Carbonate.    Use    Copper 
carbonate  5  oz.,  Ammonia  (26°  Beaume*)  3  pints,  water 

45  gals- 

7.  Whale-oil  soap.     Dissolve  2  Ibs.  in  i  gal.  hot 

water.     Dilute  4  times  before  spraying. 

8.  Formalin  Spray.    Use  i  pint  Formalin  to  30 
gals,  water. 

58 


GARDEN  PESTS  AND  SPRAYING 

9.  Copper  Sulphate.    Use  i  Ib.  Copper  sulphate 
to  from  25  to  50  gallons  of  water. 

FUNGICIDES 

10.  Bordeaux  Mixture.    Use  5  Ibs.  Copper  sul- 
phate, 5  Ibs.  unslaked  quicklime,  and  50  gals,  water. 
Slake  lime  wi  h  water  to  a  thin  paste  and  strain  this. 
Place  lime  paste  and  Copper  sulphate  in  jug  and  mix 
thoroughly  by  shaking.     Then  add  this  to  full  quantity 
of  water.     Any  arsenites  to  be  combined  with  Bordeaux 
mixture  may  be  added  as  required. 

11.  Sulph'de  of  Potassium.    Use  4  oz.  of  potas- 
sium sulphide  to  5  gals,  water.     Dissolve  sulphide  in 
warm  water  and  dilute  to  spraying  strength.      Use 
only  when  fresh  as  it  soon  loses  strength. 

The  following  names  of  insect  and  fungous  pests 
are  followed  each  by  the  number  of  the  recipe  for  the 
spray  to  use  in  coping  with  it : 

INSECT  PESTS 

Aphids  (Plant  Lice)  5;  Borer  10;  Canker  Worm 
2;  Codlin  Moth  5,  9;  Cottonwood-leaf  Beetle  5;  Cut- 
worm 5;  Elm  Beetle  5,  3;  Elm  Scale  3;  Fall  Web- 
worm  5;  Four-striped  Plant-bug  3;  Hollyhock  Bug  3; 
Leaf  Cutter  3;  Maple  Borer  n;  Maple  Cotton  Scale 
(Wooly  Scale)  7;  Mealy  Bug  7;  Mite  3;  Oyster  shell 
Scale  3,  4;  Red  Spider  3;  Rose  Bug  i;  Roseleaf 
Hopper  7;  Rose  Scale  3;  Rose  Slug  6;  San  Jos6  Scale 
3,  7,  4  (winter) ;  Scurfy  Scale  3,  7,  4  (winter) ;  Tussock 
Moth  2;  Willow  Worm  5. 

59 


THE  GARDEN  PRIMER 


FUNGOUS  PESTS 

Anthracnose  10;  Chrysanthemum  Leaf-spot  10; 
Hollyhock  Rust  10;  Leaf  Blight  10;  Leaf -rust  10; 
Maple  Leaf-spot  10;  Mildew  10;  Pansy  Rust  10; 
Rose  Leaf-blight  10;  Rust  10;  Verbena  Rust  n. 

For  the  Borer  paint  the  trunk  of  trees  with  lime- 
wash,  containing  5  oz.  of  Paris  Green  to  each  gallon  of 
water.  For  ants  pour  a  teaspoonful  of  bisulphate  of 
carbon  in  each  ant-hole  and  cover  up.  The  chewing 
insects  that  injure  our  ornamental  trees  may  be  de- 
stroyed by  arsenite  sprays,  but  the  sucking  insects  must 
be  smothered  by  such  sprays  as  the  whale-oil  soap  (7), 
kerosene  emulsion  (3),  or  the  lime-sulphur  solution  (4). 

One  of  the  greatest  aids  to  freedom  from  fungous 
and  insect  pests  is  cleanliness  in  the  garden.  See  to  it 
that  your  lawns,  yards,  orchards,  gardens,  borders  and 
all  are  free  from  rubbish,  especially  free  from  vegetable 
matter,  such  as  old  tree-twigs  and  plant  stocks  that  have 
died  from  abnormal  causes.  As  a  stitch  in  time 
saves  nine  so  does  the  spraying  of  one  infected 
plant  often  save  all  of  them  from  total  destruction. 
Therefore  it  is  well  for  the  amateur  gardener,  as  well  as 
for  the  professional,  to  have  always  at  hand  some  con- 
venient and  ready  reference  for  emergencies. 

The  garden  beginner  will  find  the  Tables  of 
First,  Second,  Third  and  Fourth  Spraying,  with  key 
to  Insecticides  and  Fungicides  to  use,  at  the  end  of 
this  volume  (pages  112  and  113),  and  it  should  prove 
a  handy  and  reliable  table  for  reference. 


When   there   are    extensive   spraying    operations   to    be   at- 
tended to  the  barrel  pump-spray,  moved  around  on  a 
pair  of  wheels,  may  be  resorted  to,  but  the  garden 
beginner  can  probably  dispense  with  this  the 
first  season,  unless  he  takes  hold  of  a 
big    lawn,    grove,    and    garden 


The  wheelbarrow,  spade,   hoe,   rake,  trowel   and  watering 
pot  are  the  gardener's  friends.     We  see  what  faith- 
fulness to  their  use  has  helped  to  produce  here 


XII 
GARDEN  TOOLS 

AS  one  cannot  have  a  good  garden  without  cultivat- 
ing it,  there  cannot,  in  turn,  be  good  cultivation 
without  good  tools.  By  good  tools,  the  beginner  will 
come  to  understand,  is  meant  useful  tools.  They  need 
not  be  elaborate,  expensive  and  intricate  affairs,  but 
neither  need  they  be  as  clumsy  as  the  implements  of  the 
aborigines. 

In  gardening  you  dig  up  the  soil,  pulverize  it,  and 
work  it  over.  Hence  you  will  need  a  spade  (or  a 
garden  trowel  for  a  small  bed),  a  rake  (or  a  gardening 
hand  rake  for  a  small  bed),  and  a  hoe  (or  again  the 
garden  trowel  for  a  small  bed)  in  cultivating.  None 
of  these  things  can  well  be  dispensed  with  because  they 
are  primitive  in  principle  and  yet  eternal  in  usefulness. 

When  you  have  turned  over  the  soil  with  the  spade 
or  trowel,  have  pulverized  it,  more  or  less,  with  rake  or 
hand-rake,  and  have  had  your  seeds  in  the  ground  until 
they  are  just  appearing,  you  will  find  the  hoe  (or  a  hand 
weeder  in  small  beds)  necessary  in  checking  the  weeds » 
which  always  seem  to  outdistance  the  garden  plants 
in  growth  rapidity. 

61 


THE  GARDEN  PRIMER 


For  the  larger  garden  of  vegetables  in  rows  the 
wheel-hoe  is  one  of  the  most  worth-while  tools  ever  in- 
vented. It  combines  weeding  and  cultivating  and  is 
so  simple  in  its  principle  that  one  may  recommend  its 
use  to  the  beginner  who  need  have  no  fear  of  its  being 
a  complicated  machine,  requiring  vast  experience  to 
run  it. 

As  a  gardening  accessory  a  garden  line  will  be  of 
great  service.  By  its  use,  stretched  between  movable 
stakes,  the  beginner  can  lay  out  his  rows  straight  as 
any  arrow,  and  have  rectangular  beds  that  are  not  lop- 
sided. Then  by  driving  a  stake  in  the  center,  and 
throwing  a  loop  of  the  line  around  it,  when  once  he  has 
fixed  the  length  of  the  radius,  he  can  move  the  line 
around  in  a  circle  and  thus  mark  out  a  perfect  circular 
bed. 

Then  there  is  the  watering-pot  to  be  thought  of, 
unless  hose  and  nozzle  you  have  at  hand.  Hand- 
sprayers  can  be  purchased  if  your  plants  are  troubled 
by  pests,  but  all  these  things  can  be  added  as  necessary. 
A  few  good  tools  is  all  anyone  need  bother  with,  though 
it  will  pay  the  garden  beginner  to  read  over  the  cata- 
logues of  garden-tool  manufacturers  and  keep  abreast 
of  all  the  devices  on  the  market,  as  some  one  of  them 
may  fit  some  especial  need. 


62 


xin 

THE  FLOWER  GARDEN 

THE  making  of  a  successful  flower  garden  is  not  a 
matter  to  be  left  to  chance,  and  perhaps  it  is  one 
of  man's  inconsistencies  that  he  is  willing  to  dig  and 
delve  for  a  vegetable,  while,  more  often  than  not,  he 
begrudges  the  care  he  should  give  a  Verbena,  as  though 
the  satisfaction  of  a  sense  of  the  beautiful  should  not 
have  half  a  chance  with  one's  appetite.  Now  there 
is  scarcely  anyone  who  does  not  care  for  flowers,  al- 
though it  must  be  admitted  there  are  many  who  give 
them  little  enough  thought. 

With  the  first  breath  of  every  spring  and  the  return 
of  the  birds  from  their  winter  holiday,  one  begins  to 
feel  an  enthusiasm  for  making  just  as  good  resolutions 
as  every  New  Year's  day  brings  forth.  Among  them 
no  one  is  more  fitting  to  the  happiness  of  living  than 
a  resolve  to  have  a  flower  garden.  The  joy  of  it 
will  always  repay  the  trouble  of  it  a  thousand  times 
over. 

In  the  preceding  pages  the  garden  beginner  will 
have  learned  about  garden  soils  and  their  preparation, 
seeds,  transplanting,  and  the  care  of  mature  plants,  as 

63 


THE  GARDEN  PRIMER 


well  as  all  that  it  is  necessary  for  him  in  the  beginning 
to  know  about  fertilizing.  Therefore,  what  to  plant 
becomes  a  matter  of  moment,  as  also  a  hint  that  such 
flowers  as  Candytuft  Love-in-a-mist,  Lupine,  Mig- 
nonette, Nasturtium  and  Poppy  will  not  bear  trans- 
planting. 

As  the  garden  beginner  has  learned,  Perennials 
seldom  blossom  until  the  second  season  after  planting 
from  seed,  and  so  the  annuals  are  the  plants  to  which 
the  amateur  gardener  turns  when  in  need  of  flower 
effects  for  the  first  year  of  his  experimenting.  How- 
ever, lateness  in  season  need  not  deter  one  from  having 
a  garden  even  if  it  is  long  past  seeding  time.  Grown 
plants  may  be  obtained  from  the  florist,  and  after  these 
plants  have  found  themselves  at  home  in  your  garden 
they  will  increase,  with  care,  year  after  year,  until  you 
in  turn  will  be  able  to  exchange  with  your  gardening 
neighbors.  Thus  one  may  have  all  sorts  of  beautiful 
flowers  in  his  first  year's  garden. 

The  accompanying  table  is  designed  to  guide  the 
beginner  at  flower  gardening  to  the  standard  annuals 
and  perennials  everyone  may  grow  almost  anywhere. 
It  indicates  time  of  sowing,  blossoming,  etc.,  which 
information  everyone  planting  a  flower  garden  will  find 
most  useful  to  have  for  reference.  For  all  general 
purposes  the  plants  in  this  table  have  been  divided  into 
perennials,  annuals,  and  biennials,  indicated  by  the 
letters  P,  B,  A.  Many  of  the  perennials  may  be  treated 
as  annuals,  certain  annuals  as  biennials  and  certain 
biennials  as  annuals.  Therefore,  some  of  the  species  in 

64 


Why  not  make  the  border  in  the  clothes-yard 

by  the  back  fence  just  as  lovely  as  the 

garden    in    front    of    your    house? 

Anyone  can   learn  to  do  it 


well-kept    border    of    Annuals    and    hardy 

Perennials  is  a  joyous  sight  in  every 

perfect  garden,  and  is  something 

the  garden  beginner  should 

strive    to    imitate 


THE  FLOWER  GARDEN 


the  list  are  prefixed  by  two  or  more  letters.  As  the 
Chimney  Bell  Flower  (Campanula  pyramidalis) ,  Rocky 
Mountain  Columbine  (Aquilegia  carulea),  and  Iceland 
Poppy  (Papaver  nudicaule),  are  so  short-lived  at  best, 
they  are,  for  instance,  to  be  treated  as  biennials. 

As  the  wise  among  mankind  are  those  to  whom  far- 
sightedness is  sure  to  bring  its  rewards,  so,  among 
gardenkind,  looking  ahead  will  help  one  along  the 
pleasant  paths  of  garden  making.  Everyone  should 
try  to  picture  the  garden  as  it  will  appear  hi  its  wealth 
of  bloom,  long  after  the  dull-colored  earth  has  donned 
its  garb  of  green  and  gorgeous  color.  If  he  garden 
maker  will  do  this  he  will  not  wake  up  to  find  that 
he  has  planted  scarlet  Gladioli  next  to  delicate  p'nk 
Cosmos,  purple  Iris  next  to  blue  Campanula,  nor  mixed 
the  exquisite  Love-in-a-mist  with  blatant  Zinnias. 


XIV 

PLANTING  TABLE  OF  THE  BEST  FLOWERS 
FOR  THE  GARDEN 


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XV 

THE  VEGETABLE  GARDEN 

THE  prose  of  gardening — vegetable-raising — is  quite 
as  interesting  as  its  poetry — flower  culture, 
when  it  is  well  done.  There  is  nothing  that  gives  one 
a  greater  satisfaction  than  a  model  vegetable  garden, 
no  matter  how  small  it  may  be.  The  old  notion  that 
vegetable  seed  had  merely  to  be  stuck  in  the  ground 
to  come  forth  fruitfully  for  the  family  table  has  long 
since  been  dissipated  by  the  knowledge  that  no  plants 
require  more  careful  attention  and  more  good  common 
sense  in  starting  them  and  in  bringing  them  to  maturity 
than  do  vegetables. 

Nevertheless  any  garden  beginner  who  has  pro- 
fited by  what  he  has  learned  in  these  pages  has  only 
to  apply  the  information  thus  gleaned  to  the  making 
of  a  vegetable  garden.  The  appended  tables  will  be  of 
great  service  to  the  amateur  gardener,  and  by  follow- 
ing these  directions,  and  broadening  his  knowledge 
by  the  actual  experience  he  will  derive  from  his  first 
year's  garden,  raising  vegetables  will  no  longer  be  a 
thing  that  seems  fraught  with  more  difficulties  than 
appear  worth  while  coping  with.  Instead,  after  he 


THE  GARDEN  PRIMER 


has  once  started  his  vegetable  garden,  and  has  brought 
its  produce  to  the  happy  stage  of  maturity  there  will  be 
instilled  in  his  gardening  soul  an  enthusiasm  for  these 
marvels  of  patience  and  good  soil  that  will  lead  him, 
year  after  year,  to  repeat  his  garden  making,  but  to 
avoid  his  mistakes. 

In  order  that  the  garden  beginner  may  make  fewer 
of  these  mistakes  the  appended  tables  of  what  vegetables 
to  plant,  and  their  various  directions,  have  been  pre- 
pared, being  the  recorded  result  of  mature  experience 
in  vegetable  gardening. 


XVI 

PLANTING  TABLE  OF  BEST  GARDEN 
VEGETABLES 


PLANTING-TABLE    OF    BEST    GARDEN 
VEGETABLES 

Vegetable 

When  to  sow 
or  plant1 

Depth 
to  sow 
in  ins. 

Distance 

Seed  or 
plants  for 
5o-ft.row 

No. 
days 
to 
ger- 
mi- 
nate 

No.  days 
to 
mature 

Apart  in 
rows3 

Rows 
apart 

I.   CROPS  REMAINING  ENTIRB  SEASON. 

Asparagus,  seed. 
Asparagus.plants 
Bean  pole      .... 

April-May  .  .  .  . 

i 
4 

2 
2 
2 
*~I 

2 

\ 

I 

4-6 

1-2 

I 
1-2 
1-2 
i 

2-4  in. 
i  ft. 
3ft. 
3ft. 
3-4  in. 
2-3  in. 
3ft. 
4  ft, 
3-6  in. 

2  ft. 

2-4  in. 
4ft. 
6-8  ft. 
2-4  in. 

2  ft. 

4-6  in. 
3-5  in. 
3-6  in. 

2  ft. 

13  in. 
6-8  ft. 
2-3  ft. 
3-6  in. 
4ft. 
6-8  ft. 
3-4  in. 
3ft. 

15   in. 
3ft. 
3ft. 
3ft. 
15  in. 
15  in. 
4ft. 
4ft. 
15  in. 

4<t. 

15  in. 
4  ft. 
6-8  ft. 
15  in. 
3ft. 
i  ft. 
1  8  in. 
15  in. 

2ift. 
2ift. 

6-8  ft. 
3ft. 
18  in. 
4ft. 
6-8  ft. 
15  in. 
3ft. 

I  OZ. 

fp, 

ipt. 

I  OZ. 

!oz. 
pt. 
OZ. 
OZ. 

ft, 

i  oz. 
i  oz. 
i  oz. 

\-  oz. 
•i   oz. 
;•  oz. 
i  oz. 

JU 

i  oz. 
as 
I  oz. 

i  oz. 
i  oz. 
i  oz. 

20 

20-30 

6-10 
6-10 

7-iS 

10-20 

4-10 
4-iS 

6-12 

6-20 
6-20 
6—  20 
15-25 
10—  20 
15-25 

I  2-1  8 

6-15 

15-20 
6-10 

8-1  5 
6-10 
6-10 
6-12 

3  years 
i  year 
65-100 
60-90 
75-90 
90-120 
80-100 
60-85 
125-150 

120-150 
90-120 
100-125 
120-175 
100-125 
90-110 
100-150 
125-150 

75-ioo 
100-150 
i    year 
125-150 
60-75 
100-125 
125-150 

April.  .  .  . 

May  is-June  10.. 
May  20-June  10.. 
April-  August  
May-  July  
May  2o-July  10.. 
May  10-  July  15.. 

Bean,  lima  
Beet   late  

Carrot,  late  
Corn   late 

Cucumber  

Egg  Plant,  seed  . 
Egg  Plant,  plants 
Leek  
Melon,  musk  
Melon,  water  .  .  . 
Onion  

April  
May  is-June  15.. 
May  is-June  15.. 
April  

Okra  
Parsley*  
Parsnip  
Pepper,  seed  
Pepper,  plants  . 
Potatoes,  main.. 
Pumpkins   

May  is-June  15.. 
April-May  
April  

April  is-June  20. 
May  i-June  20.. 
April.  .  .        ... 

Rhubarb,  plants. 
Salsify  
Squash,  summer 
Squash,  winter  .. 
Tomato,  seed...  . 
Tomato,  plants.. 

April-May  
May  15-  July  x.. 
May  is-June  20 

May  15-  July  20. 

II.  CROPS  FOR  SUCCESSION  PLANTINGS. 

Bean,  dwarf  .... 
Endive*  . 

May  s-Aug.  15... 
April-  August  
April-July 

4 

2-3 

T 

A 

2-4  in. 
i  ft. 
6-12  in. 
i  ft. 
2-4  in. 
2-4  in. 
2-3  in. 
3-5  in. 
4-6  in. 

li-2  ft. 

i  ft 

Z*-a«ft. 
I-li  ft. 

3ft. 
3-4  ft. 
i  ft. 
1  8  in. 
15  in. 

ipt. 

ioz. 
ioz. 

50 
I  pt. 
ipt. 

ioz. 
ioz. 
i  oz. 

6-10 
5-io 
6—  10 
5-15 
5-15 
5-15 
3-io 
6-1  5 
3-8 

45-75 
75-ioo 
65-85 
75-iOQ 
50-65 
60-75 
25-50 
60-75 
60-75 

Kohlrabi* 

Lettuce*  
Peas,  smooth.  .. 
Peas,  wrinkled. 
RadHi  
Spinach  

April-August.  .  .  . 
April  i  -Aug.  i..  . 
April  i  o-  July  15. 
April  i  -Sept.  i... 
April-Sept.is  
April-Sept 

urnip  . 

III.  CROPS  TO  BE  FOLLOWED  BY  OTHERS. 

Beet,  early  
Broccoli,  early4.. 
Borecole*  
Brussels  Sprouts* 
Cabbage,  early*.. 
Carrot..  .      
Cauliflower4 

April-  June  
April  
April  
April  

2 

2 
1-2 

2 

3-4  m. 
lift. 

2ft. 

i^ft. 
lift. 
2-3  in. 
lift. 
3ft. 
2-4  in. 
2-4  in. 

15  in. 

2  ft. 

a*  ft. 

2ft. 
2   ft. 

15  in. 

2  ft. 

3-4  ft. 
15  in. 
3ft. 

1  OZ. 
35 
25 
35 

fo, 

i'pt 

apt. 
ipt. 

7-15 
5-io 
5-io 
S-io 
S-io 

10-20 

5-io 
4-10 

5-iS 

60-75 
100-140 
85-120 
100-140 
100-125 
60-80 
100-115 
60-80 
40-60 
50-65 

April  
April  

Corn,  early  
Onion  Sets  
Peas  
Crops  in  Spr    II  . 

April-Mav  15..  .. 
April  i  -May  i..  . 

74 


IV.  CROPS  THAT  MAY  FOLLOW  OTHERS. 


Beet   late 

Borecole 

Broccoli 

Brussels  Sprouts. 
Cabbage,  late... 

Cauliflower 

Celery,  seed 

Celery,  plant 

Peas,  late 

Crops  in  Sec.  II. 


fuly- August — 
lay-June2 


May-June2  . .  . 
May-June2  . .  . 
May- June2  . .  . 
May- June2  . .  . 

April 

July  i -Aug.  i.. 
May  is-Aug.  i 


2-3  m. 


3-4  m. 
2 -ft. 

2ft. 

lift. 

2*  ft. 

2  ft. 

i-2  in. 
6  in. 

2-4  in. 


i  oz. 
25 
25 
35 

25 

25 

I   OZ. 
100 

I  pt. 


7-15 
5-io 
5-io 
5-10 
5-io 
5-io 

12-20 


75-90 
85-120 
100-140 
100-140 
120-180 
100-140 

125-150 
50-75 


JIn  the  vicinity  of  New  York  City.  Each  100  miles  north  or  south  will  make  a  differ- 
ence of  5  to  7  days  later  or  earlier. 

2This  is  for  sowing  the  seed.  It  will  take  three  to  six  weeks  before  plants  are 
ready.  Hence  the  advantage  of  using  the  seed-bed.  For  instance,  you  can  start  your 
late  cabbage  about  June  isth,  to  follow  the  first  crop  of  peas,  which  should  be  cleared  off 
by  the  loth  of  July. 

3Distances  given  are  those  at  which  the  growing  plants  should  stand,  after  "thin- 
ning." The  seed,  for  crops  sown  in  drills,  should  be  sown  several  times  as  thick. 

4Best  started  in  seed-bed,  and  afterwards  transplanted;  but  may  be  sown  where 
wanted  and  afterward  thinned  to  the  best  plants. 


75 


Table  of  Vegetables,  Varieties,  and  Quantity 
of  Seed  required  for  a  50-foot  row 

VEGETABLE 

VARIETIES 

SEED 

Asparagus  

Barr's  Mammoth  •  Palmetto     .  . 

50 
Ipt. 

ipt. 
1  oz. 

40 
40 

25-40 

ioz. 
25 

100 
ipt. 

i  oz. 
25 
i  oz. 
25 
ioz. 
ioz. 

50 

ioz. 
ioz. 

25 

ioz. 

1  pt. 

ioz. 
ioz. 

Ipt. 

25 

ipk. 
ioz. 

ioz.. 

Extra    Early    Red    Valentine;    Improved 
Refugee;  GOLDEN  WAX  (lima);  Burpee's; 
Golden     Cluster    Wax;    OLD     HOMESTEAD 
(lima)  Early  Leviathan  

Bean,  Pole  

Beet               

Edmand's  Early;  Eclipse;  CRIMSON  GLOBE. 
White  French   (resembles  cauliflower  but 
hardier)  

Brussels  Sprouts 

Long  Island  Improved 

Cabbage  

(Early)  Jersey  Wakefield;  Glory  of  Enkhui- 
son  ;  Early  Summer  ;  SUCCESSION  ;  (Savoy) 
Perfection  Drumhead;  (Red)  Mammoth 
Rock  

Carrot  

Early  Scarlet  Horn;  DANVERS  HALPLONG 
Oxheart  

Cauliflower  

(Spring)  Early  Snowball;  (Autumn)  Algiers. 
(Earliest)     White     Plume;     Golden     Self- 
blanching;  (best  for  winter)  Giant  Pas- 
chal   

Celery 

Corn  

Golden  Bantam  (early  and  sweet);      Cory; 
STOWELL'S  EVERGREEN... 

Extra  Early  White  Spine;  FORDHOOK  FA- 
MOUS 

Egg  Plant 

Black  Beauty  

Endive                    .... 

Broad  Leaved  Batavian  

Kale  (or  Bonesole)..  . 
Kohlrabi 

Dwarf,  curled  Scotch  .  .   . 

Early  White  Vienna 

Leek  

American  Flag  
Big  Boston;  (Loose-head)  Simpson;  Mign- 
onette    (recommended);     NEW     YORK; 
(Cos)  Paris  White 

Lettuce  

Melon,  Musk  

(Green-flesh)    Netted    Gem;  (salmon-flesh) 
Emerald  Gem  ...        .        ... 

Melon,  Water  
Okra  

Cole's  Early;  Sweet  Heart  
(For  northern   states)    Perfected   Perkins' 
Long-Pod;  (southern  states)  White  Vel- 
vet            

Onion 

White  Portugal;  Red  Weathersfield  ;    Yel- 
low Danvers;  PRIZETAKER  
(You  can  get  at  the  hardware  stores)  
Emerald  

Onion  Sets  

Imperial  Guernsey 

Peas 

(Dwarf  early)     Alaska  ;    GRADUS  ;    Boston 
Unrivaled  

Pepper 

Ruby  King  

Potato  

Early  Rose;  Early  Harvest;  GREEN  MOUN- 

Dunkard  •  Quaker  Pie  

Radish.          .      •    .. 

Scarlet  Button;  Early  White  Turnip;  CRIM- 

Rhubarb 

25 
foa. 

ioz. 
ioz. 
20 
ioz. 

Salsify 

Sandwich  Island  Mammoth  

Spinach  

Victoria;  (for  summer)  New  Zealand;  (for 
continuous  cutting   Swiss    Chard    (Beet) 
is  especially  recommended)  

Squash  

(For    summer)  Bush  Fordhook;  Delicata; 
(winter)  Hubbard  

Tomato  

(Earliest)     June    Pink;    Fordhook    First; 

Petrowski;      Golden      Ball;      (Rutabaga) 

76 


THE  GARDENER'S  KALENDAR 


xvn 
THE  GARDENER'S  KALENDAR 

THERE  is  nothing  in  the  world  that  refreshes  the 
memory  like  experiences  that  have  left  a  strong 
impression  on  the  mind,  yet  it  is  well,  now  and  then, 
to  anticipate  the  things  one  has  to  do,  or  may  do,  each 
month  in  the  garden  by  having  at  hand  a  Kalendar  of 
monthly  garden  operations,  conveniently  and  briefly 
set  forth. 

The  garden  beginner  will  find  the  following  monthly 
reminders  compiled  from  various  sources  of  service  to 
him,  and  they  have  been  selected,  as  nearly  as  possi- 
ble, to  apply  to  all  those  parts  of  the  country  where 
extremely  early  seasons  are  not  to  be  looked  for  each 
succeeding  year  as  they  are  to  be  in  the  South. 

JANUARY 

HAVING  given  thought  to  the  planning  of  your 
next  season's  garden,  and  the  things  you  may 
wish  to  plant  in  it,  do  not  forget  the  important  matter 
of  anticipating  its  careful  cultivation, — of  the  garden 
tools  and  implements  which  you  will  need  in  working 
it  properly.  There  will  be  spades,  hoes,  lawn  mowers, 
trowels,  knives,  sprayers,  etc.,  to  think  of  and  to  select 
from  the  best  devices  offered  by  progressive  manufac- 

79 


THE  GARDEN  PRIMER 


turers.    In  gardening,  like  in  everything  else,  good  tools 
facilitate  good  workmanship  and  are  great  time-savers. 

Perhaps  a  glance  out  of  your  window  over  a  strip 
of  ground  that  now  appears  bleak  and  dreary  to  you 
will  suggest  that  another  January  should  find  a  tree, 
or  a  clump  of  shrubbery,  with  bright  stems  to  give 
some  sense  of  color  and  winter  design  to  the  landscape. 
It  is  just  that  difference  between  the  monotony  of 
snow-covered  prairies  and  snow-blanketed  woodlands 
that  brings  Nature  to  teach  man  some  of  her  decorative 
arts. 

A  clump  of  Spireas  will  bring  you  both  color  and 
decorative  form  in  winter — Spir&a  ariefolia,  which 
retains  its  dead  flower  clusters  a  long  time,  a  pleasant 
contrast  of  brown  against  the  white  snows,  and  Spirted 
Lindleyana,  whose  bright  colored  stems  also  enliven 
the  lines  of  the  gray  landscape. 

Start  the  tuberous  plants,  Gloxinias  and  Begonias, 
now,  if  you  would  have  them  bloom  early.  Put  them 
in  flats,  thickly  together,  and  cover  lightly  with  sandy 
earth.  Avoid  their  rotting,  and  pot  as  soon  as  roots 
are  developed. 

Winter  mice  and  rabbits  may  be  girdling  your  trees. 
If  so,  bind  strips  of  tar-paper  around  each  tree  thus 
attacked,  high  enough,  however,  to  be  above  the  prob- 
able snow-line. 

80 


An  old-fashioned  garden  of  this  sort  was  the  result  of  one 
garden   beginner's  first  season's   experimenting 


What  a  garden   beginner  may  do  to  beautify  the  walls  of 
his  home 


Everyone  may  have  such  a  little  garden  as  this.     Hardly 
a  space  is  too  tiny  for  some  growing  things 


THE  GARDENER'S  KALENDAR 

These  are  the  principal  flowers  whose  seed  may  now 
be  sown  in  the  greenhouse:  Pansy,  Lobelia,  Verbena, 
Marguerite,  Carnation,  Snapdragon,  Petunia,  Daisy, 
Forget-me-not,  Wishbone  Plant,  Impatiens,  Salvia  and 
Canna. 

If  there  is  carting  and  wheeling  to  be  done  around 
a  place  now  is  a  good  time  to  do  it,  when  the  ground 
is  hard  and  the  turf  will  not  be  cut  up  by  wheels  to  leave 
unsightly  streaks  across  the  summer  lawn. 

Plan  early  to  order  your  Chrysanthemum  cuttings 
so  you  will  have  good  material  for  fall  exhibition. 

It  is  too  early  of  course  to  make  hotbeds  outdoors 
throughout  northern  states,  but  one  may  sow  almost  all 
kinds  of  vegetable  seeds  indoors  for  early  crops  if  care 
is  taken  and  proper  light,  heat  and  ventilation  pro- 
vided. 

See  that  the  spots  in  your  garden  where  you 
have  had  Campanula  growing  are  carefully  pro- 
tected. 

Send  to  your  seedsmen  for  catalogues  if  you  have 
not  done  so  already,  and  give  careful  thought  to  the 
contents  of  these,  not  only  in  the  matter  of  selecting  the 
things  you  like  and  admire,  but  with  forethought  of 
planting  effects. 

81 


THE  GARDEN  PRIMER 


FEBRUARY 

NOW  is  the  time  to  take  cuttings  of  your  Stevia 
(Piqueria  trinervia),  or  as  soon  as  it  is  through 
its  Christmas  flowering.  From  time  to  time  shift  them 
until  they  are  ready  for  6-inch  pots.  Then  plunge 
them  outdoors  in  ashes  when  all  danger  of  frost  is  past, 
turning  the  pots  every  day  to  keep  them  from  rooting 
into  the  ground.  Induce  a  bush  form  by  pinching  out 
the  growths.  Store  the  plants  in  a  light  cool  place  as 
cold  weather  comes  on,  and  bring  a  few  of  them  at  a 
time  into  the  flower  room.  Thus,  in  succession  you 
will  have  the  Stevia  for  November,  December  and 
January. 

Don't  forget  that  you  may  have  some  spraying  to  do 
in  February. 

Hotbeds  will  hardly  be  started  as  early  as  February 
in  parts  of  the  country  north  of  Philadelphia,  surely 
not  near  Chicago,  Detroit  or  New  York. 

If  you  are  intending  to  start  a  Mushroom  crop  you 
have  no  time  to  lose  now. 

Cuttings  may  now  be  taken  for  Paris  Daisies, 
Chrysanthemums,  and  Begonias  for  October  and  later 
flowering.  It  would  be  well  to  buy  small  greenhouse 
plants  at  this  time  to  be  grown  through  the  summer  to 
maturity. 

82 


THE  GARDENER'S  KALENDAR 

Achimenes  tubers  should  now  be  started  in  flats, 
in  light  soil,  with  leaf  mold  and  sand,  and  sheep  manure 
to  enrich  it.  A  temperature  of  60  degrees  will  be 
required  at  night. 

If  you  are  digging  around  your  garden  at  any  time 
remember  that  dug-in  snow  chills  the  soil  where  roots 
may  be  dormant,  consequently  they  will  be  injured 
or  killed  by  thoughtless  treatment  of  this  sort. 

Don't  forget  that  your  lawn  needs  winter  care. 
Top  dress  it  with  fine  manure. 

Both  Gladioli  and  Cosmos  may  be  started  indoors 
now  for  early  bloom  and  bedding  plants  propagated 
from  stock  plants. 

Place  your  orders  early  with  your  nurseryman  if 
you  would  avoid  disappointment  in  the  rush  for  good 
plants  that  always  seems  coincident  with  the  beginning 
of  every  season's  rush  work. 

If  you  procure  your  seeds  in  time  you  will  have  an 
opportunity  of  testing  their  germinating  qualities  before 
the  regular  outdoor  planting  season. 

Among  the  indoor  vegetable  seeds  you  will  be 
sowing  in  February  for  outdoor  transfer  in  May  are 
lettuce,  tomatoes,  cabbage,  eggplant,  celery,  onion, 
endive,  radishes,  parsley,  etc. 


THE  GARDEN  PRIMER 


For  early  vegetables  start  beets,  cauliflower,  string 
beans,  kohlrabi,  etc.,  in  greenhouse  or  window  for  later 
transference  to  hotbeds  and  cold  frames. 

Inspect  your  house-plants,  especially  palms  and 
ferns,  and  if  you  find  their  roots  greatly  grown  and 
spread,  shift  them  to  larger  pots. 

MARCH 

TAKE  a  look  around  the  lawn  and  see  what  repairs 
it  will  be  needing,  and  get  out  your  lawn  tools 
for  a  thorough  overhauling,  so  you  may  plan  for  others 
you  may  wish  to  order. 


If  you  have  mulched  your  lawn  the  autumn  before, 
remove  this  mulch  the  first  day  the  frost  leaves  the 
ground  otherwise  the  roots  under  it  will  take  an  unnat- 
ural start,  which  will  receive  a  severe  setback  by  later 
frosts. 


Examine  your  porch  vines  and  tie  them  up  with  new 
fastenings  where  needed. 


Look  over  your  garden  paths  and  walks  and  plan 
their  betterment.  Flagstone  and  flat  stepping-stones 
can  be  employed  usefully  for  these. 


Nitrate  of  soda  as  well  as  common  salt  will  help 
the  growth  of  your  rhubarb  and  asparagus  if  put  on  the 
beds  in  March. 

84 


THE  GARDENER'S  KALENDAR 

You  may  prune  your  Hydrangeas,  Dogwood  and 
Elders  now,  and  if  you  have  forgotten  to  prune  your 
grape-vines  it  is  better  to  do  it  now  than  not  at  all. 
Hybrid  perpetual  Roses  may  be  pruned  back  to  one 
or  two  feet  as  soon  as  frost  leaves  the  ground. 

By  March  i5th  it  will  be  well  to  uncover  your  bulb 
beds  and  also  your  hardy  borders. 

Put  boxes  and  barrels  around  your  rhubarb  plants 
after  the  snow  has  gone,  and  put  manure  over  them. 
At  night  they  should  have  a  top  covering. 

Sow  inside  under  cover  Bachelor  Buttons,  Calendula, 
Drummond  Phlox,  French  Marigolds,  double  Petunias, 
Lantana,  Cannas,  Coleas,  Heliotrope  (for  budding  out) , 
Ostrich  Plume  Chrysanthemums  and  Chaubaud  Carna- 
tions (for  October  and  later  flowering),  Ardisia  (for 
bloom  next  spring,  and  berry  fruit  the  Christmas  after), 
Dahlias  (to  flower  this  season),  among  other  flowers. 

Lily-of-the- Valley  pips  should  be  started  right  away, 
in  time  for  Easter  bloom.  Your  Snowdrops,  Scillas, 
Crocus,  Hepaticas,  Magnolias  and  English  daisies 
should  be  blooming  this  month.  Bring  forth  the  rest 
of  your  bulbs  from  the  cellar. 

Magnolias  of  all  varieties,  hybrid  Rhododendrons 
and  Mountain  Laurel  should  be  set  out  only  in  the 
spring,  and  then  as  soon  as  the  ground  may  be  worked. 

8s 


THE  GARDEN  PRIMER 


Orchard  trees  may  be  transplanted  as  soon  as  the 
ground  will  work  up  to  a  fine  and  mellow  soil.  They 
should  never  be  put  into  a  sticky  mortar-like  soil. 
Deciduous  trees  and  shrubs  may  now  be  set  out. 

Remember  that  all  your  spraying  should  be  finished 
by  the  middle  of  April. 

Sow  lettuce,  globe  artichokes  in  cold-frames  and 
hotbeds,  beets,  carrots,  onions,  tomatoes,  egg-plant  and 
peppers  in  flats;  also  thin  out  those  already  up  which 
you  started  earlier. 

If  you  sow  parsley  now  indoors  you  will  have  a  good 
April  crop.  Before  planting  parsley  seed  soak  it  in 
warm  water  for  a  day,  as  it  is  very  slow  to  germinate. 


If  the  season  is  a  very  early  one  get  your  Sweet  Pea 
seeds  into  the  ground  early. 


Fork  asparagus  beds  lightly,  first  spreading  well- 
rotted  manure  or  bone  meal  on  the  ground. 

APRIL 

SET    out    Standard    Box    and    Box-edging    early. 
Where  Box-edging  has    been   set  out    the   year 
before,   it   can   be   pruned   somewhat   before   growth 
begins  in  April.     All  varieties  of  hedges  may  be  set  out 
this  month. 

86 


THE  GARDENER'S  KALENDAR 

This  is  the  month  for  planting  deciduous  trees, 
shrubs  and  vines,  fruit  and  nut  trees  (especially  dwarf 
varieties)  and  small-fruit  bushes. 

Fertilize  asparagus  bed  and  rhubarb  patch  with 
nitrate  of  soda. 

Prune  grape-vines  and  fruit  trees,  but  not  small- 
fruit  bushes. 

Examine  your  shade  trees  and  if  you  fin4  any 
cavities  of  decay  in  their  trunks  clean  these  out  and 
fill  up  with  cement. 

Look  to  the  matter  of  this  month's  spraying,  and  do 
not  neglect  any  part  of  your  garden. 

You  will  need  to  divide  roots  of  your  perennials 
in  the  hardy  border  this  month. 

You  can  plant  all  evergreens  this  month. 

Remove  winter  mulching  from  your  strawberry  bed. 

Tender  roses  may  be  pruned  late  in  the  month; 
also  spray  them  with  whale-oil  soap. 

Have  your  coldframes  ready  for  transferring  to 
them  tender  vegetables  and  flowers  from  the  hotbed  for 
hardening  by  the  middle  of  the  month. 

87 


THE  GARDEN  PRIMER 


If  you  sow  seeds  of  perennial  flowers  now  in  cold- 
frames  they  will  bloom  their  first  year. 

Plough  or  spade  the  garden  as  soon  as  the  surplus 
moisture  from  departing  frosts  is  out  of  the  ground. 

Spray  seedling  Hollyhocks  with  Bordeaux  mixture. 

Sow  Sweet  Peas  as  soon  as  the  ground  can  be  worked, 
and  also  Love-in-a-Mist  (Nigella  Damascena)  for  the 
garden  border. 

Start  your  Cannas  in  the  hotbed. 

Prepare  labels  for  the  seeds  you  will  be  planting. 

Look  over  your  garden  tools  and  see  that  they  are 
all  in  good  condition,  and  sharpen  those  which  need  it. 

This  is  a  good  time  to  build  a  birdhouse,  for  birds 
are  friends  to  your  garden  oftener  than  enemies.  But 
for  them  many  of  your  plants  would  be  killed  by  the 
insects  the  birds  destroy. 

MAY 

BE  prepared  against  late  frosts  but    do    not  rush 
the  season,  though  you  should  plan  not    to  be 
behindhand   with   anything.     When   all  danger  from 
frost  is  past  transplant  your  tender  flowers  and  vege- 
tables from  hotbed  to  garden. 


THE  GARDENER'S  KALENDAR 

Now  is  the  time  to  sow  everything  required  for 
succession,  late  Peas,  Beans,  Cabbage  for  late  use, 
Cucumber,  Radish,  late  Broccoli,  Winter  Kale,  Vege- 
table Marrow,  Brussels  Sprouts,  Horn  Carrot  and 
Main  Crop  Carrots,  Spinach,  Turnip,  Beet,  Parsley, 
Colewort,  Onion,  Lettuce,  Cauliflower,  Parsnip,  Ridge 
Cucumber.  Also  Phlox  Drummondii,  Marigold,  Cal- 
ceolaria, Ten-week  Stock,  Cineraria,  Primula,  Orna- 
mental Grasses,  Grass  Seed  and  Aster. 

Remember  to  spray  your  orchard  trees  as  soon  as 
the  petals  fall  from  the  blossoms. 

The  middle  of  the  month  is  the  time  to  spray  your 
rose  bushes  with  whale-oil  soap,  and  the  last  week  in 
May  they  should  receive  liquid  manurial  stimulant. 

Mulch  your  strawberries  just  before  they  bloom. 


Sow  all  hardy  annuals  and  transplant  such  as  you 
have  had  started  in  coldframes  in  March,  which  have 
been  hardened  off.  It  is  not  too  late  to  sow  tender 
annuals  in  coldframes  for  later  transplanting. 

Shift  perennials,  and  rearrange  border  plants. 
This  can  be  done  with  safety  by  the  end  of  the  month. 

This  is  a  good  time  to  think  about  flower-boxes  for 
porch  and  windows. 

89 


THE  GARDEN  PRIMER 


Gladioli  planted  this  month  will  bloom  in  August. 


Look  out  for  cut-worms  that  will  be  appearing  in 
your  garden  soon.  Dig  them  up  and  kill  them  as  soon 
as  you  find  any  of  your  young  plants  dying  without  any 
apparent  reason.  Cut-worms  are  probably  chewing 
at  the  roots. 

Carnations  may  be  taken  from  the  greenhouse  for 
outdoor  planting  the  latter  part  of  the  month. 

Plant  Sunflowers,  if  only  for  the  sake  of  such  useful 
birds  as  the  Goldfinch  and  Nuthatch. 


Now  is  the  time  to  plant  hardy  border  plants, 
Alpines,  Climbers,  and  especially  Gladioli,  Gaillardias, 
Pyrethrums  (cut  back  for  late  flowering),  Delphiniums 
(cut  back  for  late  flowering) ,  Geraniums,  Chrysanthe- 
mums, Hollyhocks,  Clematises,  Ivies,  Passion  Flowers, 
Dahlias,  Calceolarias,  Phloxes,  Pentstemons,  Cannas. 
Also  Potatoes,  Broccoli,  Brussels  Sprouts,  Celery  and 
Lettuce. 

After  the  grass  is  well  started  fertilize  your  lawn 
with  pulverized  sheep  manure. 

Remember  that  just  after  they  finish  blooming  is 
the  time  to  prune  all  spring-flowering  shrubs. 

Spray  your  Elms  now  and  thus  begin  the  fight  against 
the  Elm-leaf  beetle. 

90 


w 


THE  GARDENER'S  KALENDAR 

JUNE 

ATCH  the  newly  set  trees  and  vines  to  see  that 
they  start  right.  Rub  off  all  shoots  on  bodies 
and  at  base,  also  surplus  shoots  on  branches.  Allow 
only  one  or,  at  most,  two  shoots  to  grow  on  grape  vines. 
Keep  soil  stirred  or  mulched  about  trees  and  vines. 
Treat  as  weeds  all  shoots  from  the  blackberries  and 
raspberries  and  other  suckering  things  except  such  as 
are  needed  for  new  plants.  Keep  blossoms  and  run- 
ners from  newly  set  strawberries.  Pinch  tips  of  "cap" 
raspberries  when  two  feet  high.  Watch  out  for  currant 
worms  on  currants  and  gooseberries,  rose  beetles  on 
roses,  grapes,  plum  and  cherry  trees. 

June  is  the  month  of  belated  things  and  of  the  begin- 
ning of  the  forward  look.  Plant  more  flower-seeds 
for  later  display;  start  Coleus  cuttings  to  fill  in  unex- 
pected gaps;  sow  Perilla,  Dwarf  Nasturtiums  and 
"Rose  Moss"  (Portulaca)  seeds  in  semishady  places  to 
take  the  places  of  failing  early  annuals;  sow  winter 
stock  seed  to  take  up  in  autumn  for  the  window  garden ; 
start  seeds  of  biennials  and  perennials  for  the  following 
year's  blossoming  bedders — Heucheras,  Campanulas, 
Anchusas,  etc. 

For  late  crop  sow  beets,  carrots,  potatoes,  and  for 
succession  radishes,  sweet  corn,  beans,  and  turnips. 
Transplant  cabbages,  cauliflowers,  tomatoes,  celery, 
peppers. 

91 


THE  GARDEN  PRIMER 


Look  out  for  cut-worms  in  your  garden  beds. 

Spray  for  garden  pests.  Spray  berry  bushes  and 
fruit  trees  twice  in  June. 

June  is  the  critical  gardening  time — you  must  weed 
and  cultivate  carefully  and  persistently  for  successful 
results. 

Privet  hedges  may  be  trimmed  this  month. 
Plant  Dahlias  and  Gladioli. 
Begin  to  tie  up  Tomato  vines. 

Set  out  Cabbage  and  Cauliflower  plants  in  rich  soil. 
Well  drained  clay  soil  is  best  for  Cabbage. 

Tender  annuals  planted  after  June  ist  will  develop 
with  wonderful  rapidity. 

JULY 

CUT  back  hybrid  perpetual  Roses  about  six  inches 
after  June  bloom  is  over  and  with  fertilizing  and 
cultivating  a  second  crop  of  blossoms  may  result  in  the 
same  season. 

Plant  Artichokes  the  middle  of  the  month. 

Keep  your  flowering  plants  such  as  Chrysanthe- 
mums, Cosmos  and  Dahlias  to  a  compact  bushy  growth 
by  "pinching." 

92 


THE  GARDENER'S  KALENDAR 


As  fast  as  you  find  suckers  forming  on  fruit  trees 
remove  them  at  once. 

Keep  Sweet  Peas,  Marigolds,  and  other  flowering 
annuals  picked,  for  their  plants  will  soon  cease  to 
bloom  if  allowed  to  go  to  seed. 

You  may  have  dwarf  Asters  for  late  bloom  in  window 
boxes  for  the  autumn  if  seed  of  these  is  sown  now. 

Harvest  early  vegetables  and  rework  and  replant 
soil  for  late  crops. 

AUGUST 

THIS  is  a  good  time  to  plant  Evergreens  and  thus 
avoid  the  rush  of  spring  work.     Do  not  wait 
until  September  to  do  this,  as  the  plants,  set  out  now, 
will  get  a  firmer  hold  on  the  soil  before  winter  sets  in. 

Sow  perennials  in  coldframes,  which  will  prevent 
the  seeds  from  being  washed  out  of  the  earth  by  late 
rains. 

Carnations  that  have  been  growing  outside  in  the 
garden  must  now  be  brought  indoors. 

Easter  Lilies  may  be  potted  this  month  for  forcing. 
They  should  be  kept  in  a  cool,  dark  place  until  they 
are  thoroughly  rooted. 

Cut  out  the  old  canes  from  your  berry  bushes. 
93 


THE  GARDEN  PRIMER 


SEPTEMBER 

THIS  is  the  time  to  establish  new  beds,  which  may 
be  filled  with  the  thinnings  from  the  hardy 
perennials.  Do  not,  however,  move  hardy  Chrysan- 
themums, Anemone  Japonica,  Yuccas,  late  Tritomas, 
Magnolias  or  Altheas;  these  are  best  moved  in  April. 
The  young  plants  of  Hollyhocks,  Foxglove,  hardy  Gail- 
lardia,  Sweet  William,  and  Clove  Pinks  if  not  trans- 
planted by  September  20th  should  be  left  undisturbed 
until  spring. 

Perennials  which  are  now  being  grown  in  boxes 
from  the  seed  should,  by  the  i5th  of  the  month,  be 
planted  in  the  garden  where  they  are  to  bloom.  Protect 
them  in  the  winter  with  a  light  covering  of  straw  or 
manure;  that  will  keep  them  from  being  affected  by 
sudden  changes  of  the  weather. 

In  the  border  or  among  shrubs  there  can  be  no  more 
attractive  flower  than  the  Larkspur  (Delphinium). 
There  is  both  the  annual  and  perennial,  and  the  shades 
of  flower  bloom  are  almost  numberless,  including  light, 
dark,  and  azure-blue,  white,  buff,  rose,  apple-bloom, 
pink,  brick-red,  red-lilac,  dark-lilac,  violet,  and  fawn. 
The  seed  of  either  the  annual  or  perennial  should  be 
sown  now  in  the  open.  Germination  will  take  place 
early  in  the  spring  and  remarkably  early  growth  and 
bloom  will  be  secured.  It  is  almost  difficult  to  go 
wrong  in  the  selection  of  a  variety — that  should  be  left 

94 


THE  GARDENER'S  KALENDAR 

to  the  individual  preference  of  colors  and  whether  single, 
semi-double  or  double  blooms  are  desired.  A  bed  of 
Larkspur  is  strikingly  effective  in  almost  any  garden. 
It  makes  a  good  cut  flower,  and  the  plants  will  bloom 
almost  continually  if  the  blooms  are  removed  as  they 
fade. 

No  ironclad  rule  for  every  section  of  the  country  at 
once  can  be  made  as  to  when  and  how  to  prune  shrubs. 
In  a  general  way  such  as  bloom  before  midsummer 
produce  flowers  on  wood  grown  the  previous  year,  and 
these  should  be  pruned  immediately  after  flowering, 
as  to  prune  them  in  the  spring  would  be  to  cut  away  the 
wood  which  would  produce  blooms.  Such  as  bloom 
after  midsummer  can  be  pruned  in  the  spring  as  they 
produce  flowers  on  wood  made  the  same  season.  All 
pruning  that  is  essential  to  shrubs  is  such  as  is  necessary 
to  keep  the  plants  in  symmetrical  shape  and  to  admit 
unobstructed  circulation  of  air  and  sunshine. 

When  massed  in  beds  or  borders  Peonies  are  at  their 
best.  This  is,  however,  open  to  some  objection  as  they 
are  in  bloom  for  only  a  month.  If  used  in  connection 
with  other  plants,  such  as  Asters,  Gladioli,  late-blooming 
Cosmos,  or  Lilies,  perhaps  more  satisfaction  would  be 
had.  Despite  the  short  season  of  bloom  the  foliage 
of  the  peony  remains  vigorous  and  green  during  the 
summer  and  fall  months. 

After  the  blooming  season  is  over  work  into  the  soil 
about  the  roots  of  each  plant  a  handful  or  so  of  pulver- 

95 


THE  GARDEN  PRIMER 


ized  sheep  manure.  After  the  ground  is  well  frosted 
apply  a  mulch  of  stable  manure  of  five  or  six  inches 
thickness  and  let  it  remain  until  spring.  That  will 
prevent  the  alternate  freezing  and  thawing  of  the  ground 
near  the  roots.  It  is  the  freezing  and  thawing,  and  not 
the  freezing  itself,  that  damages  or  destroys  the  plants. 
In  the  spring  when  the  mulch  is  removed  work  into 
the  ground  another  application  of  pulverized  sheep 
manure.  Pulverized  sheep  manure  is  best,  as  no  other 
fertilizer  appears  to  contain  all  the  requisite  essentials 
to  produce  such  luxurious  and  bounteous  growth. 


About  the  next  most  important  phase  of  the  garden 
work  will  be  the  fall  planting  of  bulbs,  both  for  indoor 
and  outdoor  culture.  If  bulb  culture  is  to  be  carried 
on  even  to  only  a  limited  extent,  there  are  some  neces- 
sary primary  preparations  to  be  looked  after.  It  is 
just  as  well  to  arrange  these  preliminaries  now. 

Failures  are  usually  due  to  lack  of  proper  treatment 
both  in  planting  and  culture.  Get  together  a  liberal 
supply  of  proper  soil  and  a  supply  of  pots.  Have  the 
soil  very  rich,  loamy  and  free  from  small  stones.  A 
liberal  quantity  of  powdered  charcoal  will  be  a  desirable 
addition,  as  it  acts  both  as  an  aid  to  drainage  and  puri- 
fies the  soil,  preventing  souring.  If  the  new  catalogues 
have  been  received  it  is  a  good  time  to  begin  considering 
a  selection,  and  in  making  the  selection  keep  in  mind  the 
fact  that  small  bulbs  should  be  grouped;  half  a  dozen 
or  more  planted  together  give  more  satisfactory  results 
than  when  the  same  number  are  planted  singly.  It  is 

96 


THE  GARDENER'S  KALENDAR 

only  bulbs  that  produce  large  flowers  and  foliage  that 
make  a  fairly  presentable  appearance  when  grown 
singly.  Soft-baked,  porous,  wide-mouthed,  shallow 
pots  are  usually  preferable  for  bulb  culture. 


This  will  doubtless  prove  one  of  the  most  trying 
months  of  the  year  on  the  lawn.  To  keep  it  at  all 
decent  looking  frequent  use  of  the  hose  will  in  all 
probability  be  necessary.  In  using  the  hose  do  not 
simply  sprinkle,  but  wet  the  sod.  It  is  a  mooted  ques- 
tion as  to  whether  mere  sprinkling  does  not  do  more 
harm  than  good,  especially  if  the  sprinkling  is  followed 
by  a  hot  sun. 

Save  all  possible  material  about  the  garden  for 
mulch.  Lawn  clippings,  chopped  straw  or  leaves,  and 
old  flower  stems  cut  small,  will  be  found  useful.  Any 
of  this  material  placed  about  plants,  leaving  space 
around  the  roots  to  admit  air,  will  prove  of  great  assist- 
ance in  the  retention  of  moisture.  A  hot  or  dry 
weather  mulch  is  intended  to  keep  the  sun's  rays  from 
the  upper  sod  but  not  to  shut  out  the  air. 

In  northern  sections  Jack  Frost  is  to  be  looked  for 
this  month. 

If  any  particular  choice  plant  about  the  yard  shows 
signs  of  distress  from  the  heat  or  drought,  remove  a 
few  inches  of  the  top  soil  around  it,  leaving  a  narrow 
rim  about  the  plant  however,  and  then  make  a  few 
holes  with  a  sharp  stick,  leading  towards  the  roots. 

97 


THE  GARDEN  PRIMER 


Pour  water  into  the  cavity  made  by  the  removal  of  the 
top  soil  until  the  ground  has  soaked  up  so  much  water 
that  no  more  will  soak  away.  Crumble  the  removed 
soil  as  finely  as  possible  and  place  it  back  into  its  former 
place,  but  do  not  pack  it.  This  simple  process  will 
often  save  some  valuable  and  rare  plant. 

OCTOBER 

THE  bare  spots  in  the  lawn  should  be  looked  after. 
Loosen  the  bare  places  with  a  sharp  rake  and 
then  treat  them  to  a  dressing  of  pulverized  sheep  manure, 
and  seed  liberally.  After  seeding,  again  rake  over  the 
surface  so  that  the  seed  will  be  well  covered.  This 
should  be  followed  by  the  use  of  the  roller  to  smooth 
the  surface.  The  finer  the  soil  can  be  made  before 
seeding,  the  better  will  be  the  result  in  securing  a  good 
stand  of  grass.  If  the  lawn  is  well  cared  for,  properly 
fertilized,  and  kept  closely  mown,  the  sod  will  improve 
from  year  to  year.  Many  gardeners  think  that  the 
grass  should  be  let  grow  rather  tall  about  this  time  of 
the  year  to  make  a  protection  for  the  roots.  This  is  a 
mistake;  the  lawn  should  be  kept  closely  mown  until 
the  grass  ceases  to  grow.  If  left  to  get  tall  a  great 
deal  of  the  grass  will  die  out  during  the  winter  and  this 
long  grass  will  have  to  be  raked  out  by  hand  in  the 
spring  before  the  lawn  can  be  made  to  take  on  a  fresh 
appearance.  If  closely  mown  late  in  the  fall  it  will 
start  into  growth  very  early  the  following  spring. 
Bone  dust  and  pulverized  sheep  manure,  preferably  the 

98 


THE  GARDENER'S  KALENDAR 

latter,  make  good  lawn  fertilizers.  It  is  not  necessary 
to  have  the  lawn  unsightly  all  the  winter  months  through 
the  use  of  coarse  stable  straw-manure.  Give  a  good 
top  dressing  of  pulverized  sheep  manure  — that  is  suffi- 
cient. 

October  is  the  best  time  of  the  year  in  which  to 
plant  ornamental  trees  and  shrubs,  except  in  localities 
where  the  winters  are  extremely  severe.  In  the  selec- 
tion of  both  ornamental  trees  and  shrubs  regard  must 
be  had  for  the  adaptability  of  the  subject  to  the  climatic 
conditions  existing  where  it  is  to  be  planted.  In  plant- 
ing always  make  the  hole  at  least  a  foot  wider  than  the 
root  area  of  the  specimen,  and  the  depth  according  to  the 
depth  of  its  root  system.  If  the  earth  at  the  bottom  is  a 
stiff  hard  clay,  or  a  gravelly  hard-pan,  it  should  be 
broken  up  to  a  depth  of  a  foot  or  more  and  a  goodly 
portion  of  sods  and  manure  incorporated  with  it. 
If  the  soil  where  the  tree  or  shrub  is  being  set  is  poor, 
a  good  compost  of  well  rotted  manure,  leaf  mold,  and 
sods  should  be  thrown  in  and  dug  in  to  a  depth  of  six 
inches  or  more. 

Sweet  Pea  seed  planted  now  to  lie  dormant  in  the 
ground  all  winter  will  give  much  earlier  bloom  than 
the  earliest  spring  planting.  Fall  planting  is  especially 
desirable  for  well  drained,  light,  sandy  soils,  as  the  vines 
start  early  in  the  spring  and  come  into  flower  much 
earlier  than  they  would  in  a  heavier  soil,  where  they 
make  a  much  stronger  growth.  The  period  of  Sweet 

99 


THE  GARDEN  PRIMER 


Pea  blooming  may  be  very  much  extended  by  placing 
a  mulch  of  fine  straw  or  grass  about  the  roots,  keeping 
them  well  watered  and  the  blooms  picked  off.  It  is 
well  to  keep  in  mind  that  sweet  peas  will  not  do  well 
planted  in  the  same  soil  two  years  in  succession.  But 
if  they  are  desired  in  the  same  location  the  trench 
method  can  be  resorted  to — the  old  soil  taken  out  and 
the  trench  refilled  with  new  soil  and  manure.  Sunlight 
and  fresh  air  in  abundance  are  essential  to  successful 
sweet  pea  development.  In  the  shade  the  vines  will 
make  a  tall  growth,  little  foliage,  and  less  flowers;  in 
damp  places  the  foliage  is  apt  to  mildew  and  the  vines 
die  off  without  flowering.  Shade  and  prepare  the 
ground  properly,  having  it  in  a  fine  loose  condition, 
putting  on  a  liberal  application  of  well  rotted  barn 
manure,  or  pulverized  sheep  manure,  before  spading. 
Use  a  liberal  quantity  of  seed  to  make  sure  of  a  good 
stand — one  ounce  to  fifteen  feet  of  row  is  sufficient — 
and,  when  well  started,  thin  out  the  young  vines  until 
they  stand  from  four  to  six  inches  apart.  Light  two- 
inch-mesh  poultry  wire  makes  a  very  convenient  sup- 
port for  the  vines.  A  better  and  more  satisfactory 
way  of  supporting  the  vines  is  to  drive  stout  round  stakes, 
four  or  five  feet  high,  every  four  or  five  feet  along  the 
row,  and  then  run  light  jute  twine  from  stake  to  stake, 
commencing  a  few  inches  from  the  ground  and  putting 
the  twine  about  six  inches  apart  on  the  stakes.  The 
best  support  for  the  sweet  pea  vine,  however,  is  brush 
cut  from  the  ends  of  tree  limbs  or  from  young  bushes, 

100 


THE  GARDENER'S  KALENDAR 

These  when  firmly  planted  in  the  soil  allow  the  vines 
to  grow  in  a  more  open  way  than  the  trellis  made  of 
either  wire  or  twine.  The  support  for  the  vines  should 
be  provided  before  or  as  soon  after  planting  as  possible 
so  that  the  first  tendrils  may  attach  themselves  firmly 
to  the  supports.  Commence  cultivation  as  soon  as  the 
plants  are  above  the  surface  and  continue  it  during  the 
entire  season.  About  the  only  thing  to  be  done  is  to 
keep  the  soil  loose  and  fine  for  a  depth  of  two  or  three 
inches.  Frequent  workings  keep  out  weeds  and  admit 
the  air  more  freely  to  the  roots,  and  keep  the  soil  in 
the  best  condition  for  plant  growth.  During  dry 
weather  thoroughly  soak  the  roots  of  the  vines  twice 
a  week.  Do  not  allow  seed  pods  to  form  on  the  vines, 
and  keep  all  faded  or  dried  flowers  picked  off.  Cutting 
the  branches  or  tips  of  the  vines  back  occasionally 
will  induce  them  to  branch  and  thus  prolong  the  season 
of  bloom. 

Childhood  recollections  of  spring  flowers  are  usually 
associated  with  the  fragrant  Hyacinth.  The  florists 
have  not  been  able  to  supplant  or  even  approximate  it 
for  early  out  door  flowering.  Delightful  effect  can  be 
had  by  massing  different  varieties  that  grow  approx- 
imately the  same  height  and  bloom  at  the  same  time* 
Now  is  the  time  to  plant  Hyacinths  in  the  open.  They 
do  best  in  light  soil  with  sunny  exposure,  and  where  the 
soil  is  naturally  heavy  it  should  be  lightened  by  the 
addition  of  sand.  Spade  the  bed  to  a  depth  of  twelve 
or  fourteen  inches,  letting  it  rise  only  very  slightly  above 

101 


THE  GARDEN  PRIMER 


the  level  of  the  walk.  Plant  the  bulbs  evenly  at  a  depth 
of  about  six  inches.  To  plant  them  at  uneven  depths 
is  sure  to  produce  irregular  blooming.  The  bulbs 
should  be  set  from  six  to  eight  inches  apart  and  care 
should  be  taken  not  to  firm  the  soil  too  much  around 
and  over  them.  To  set  each  bulb  in  a  handful  of  clean 
sand  is  a  guarantee  of  proper  drainage.  After  the 
ground  freezes  cover  the  bed  with  a  few  inches  of  dry 
litter,  evergreen  boughs,  or  straw  manure  which  should 
remain  through  the  winter. 

The  Hyacinth  is  equally  desirable  for  pot  culture. 
For  this  purpose  the  large  varieties  should  be  chosen. 
They  should  be  set  singly  in  5-inch,  or  smaller  pots; 
a  y-inch  pot  will  carry  three  bulbs  very  effectively. 
The  best  potting  soil  can  be  had  by  using  two  parts  of 
fibrous  loam  to  one  part  of  pulverized  sheep  manure, 
with  the  addition  of  a  little  powdered  charcoal.  First 
fill  the  pot  and  then  press  the  bulb  into  the  soil,  leaving 
about  one-third  of  the  bulb  exposed.  Bury  the  pot 
in  the  ground  with  its  top  about  six  inches  under  the 
surface  and  leave  it  in  the  open  five  or  six  weeks,  by 
which  time  it  will  be  well  filled  with  roots.  It  can  then 
be  taken  into  the  house  where  it  will  soon  be  brought 
into  flower  by  the  warmth.  Continue  to  pot  until  the 
end  of  November  for  a  succession  of  bloom.  Supply 
plenty  of  water,  and  when  the  flower-spikes  appear 
hasten  development  by  the  application  of  liquid  manure. 

Both  for  beauty  of  form  and  brilliancy  of  coloring 
there  is  no  flower  that  equals  the  Tulip.  It  is  admirably 

102 


THE  GARDENER'S  KALENDAR 

adapted  for  the  border  around  the  house.  By  the  har- 
monious massing  of  contrasting  colors  the  most  gor- 
geous effects  can  be  produced.  Tulips  are  also  inval- 
uable for  pot  culture.  The  color  of  bloom  and  height 
of  growth  are  usually  given  by  the  nurseryman  and 
that  makes  it  an  easy  matter  to  select  just  what  is 
wanted.  The  cultural  directions  given  for  the  Hyacinth 
are  equally  applicable  to  the  Tulip.  However,  as  the 
bulbs  are  smaller  they  should  not  be  planted  quite  so 
deep.  Four  inches  to  the  bottom  of  the  bulb  set  in  the 
open  is  enough t  while  the  distance  between  the  bulbs 
can  be  four  to  six  inches.  A  5 -inch  pot  will  contain 
satisfactorily  from  three  to  five  bulbs.  The  double 
Tulips  generally  come  into  bloom  later  than  the  single 
variety,  though  there  are  some  late  flowering  single  ones. 

Add  the  Narcissus  to  your  selection  of  fall  planting 
for  spring  flowering.  They  are  very  easy  of  cultivation 
and  do  well  in  almost  any  soil  and  situation,  but  prefer- 
ably in  stiff  soil  and  shaded  location.  The  Narcissus 
is  grown  extensively  in  pots  for  winter  cut  flowers  and 
requires  practically  the  same  treatment  as  has  been 
suggested  for  Hyacinths  and  Tulips.  The  Jonquil  is 
related  to  the  Narcissus  and  is  suitable  alike  for  pot 
culture  or  planting  in  the  open. 

If  a  Rose  bed  is  planted  now,  good  bloom  may 
reasonably  be  expected  next  spring.  The  plants  may 
be  set  out  any  time  before  the  ground  freezes  hard  with 
prefect  safety,  but  should  be  mulched  when  real  winter 

103 


THE  GARDEN  PRIMER 


weather  sets  in.  The  White  American  Beauty  is  one 
of  the  best  white  Roses  grown,  and  is  hardy  everywhere. 
The  General  Jacqueminot  is  a  very  desirable  red  rose. 
There  is  no  finer  pink  rose  than  the  Paul  Neyron. 
For  a  dark  crimson,  the  darkest  of  all,  Prince  Camille 
DeRohan  sets  the  pace.  Hardy  climbing  roses,  of 
which  there  are  many  varieties,  should  be  planted 
during  the  autumn. 

Manure  the  garden  and  plough  it  under  this  month. 


Rake  up  fallen  leaves,  and  save  them  as  a  mulch  for 
covering  flowers  and  shrubs.  Hard-wood  leaves  like 
oak  and  chestnut  are  especially  good. 

NOVEMBER 

THERE  is  considerable  work  now  necessary  about 
the  vegetable  garden  and  in  the  orchard.  If  a 
shade  tree  is  needed  to  be  set,  now  is  the  time  to  trans- 
plant it.  If  a  fruit  tree  is  desired,  put  it  out  now; 
or  if  one  already  out  is  found  to  be  diseased,  remove 
it  and  replant  at  this  time.  Between  the  falling  of  the 
leaves  and  the  freezing  of  the  ground  is  the  best  time  for 
planting  trees. 

It  is  a  good  plan  to  rake  the  top  earth  for  about  an 
inch  in  depth,  from  around  fruit  trees  and  make  an 
application  of  air-slaked  lime.  Let  this  remain  exposed 
for  about  two  weeks,  then  replace  the  top  soil  and  mulch 
for  winter  protection. 

104 


THE  GARDENER'S  KALENDAR 

Have  a  general  cleaning  up  about  the  yard  and  save 
all  leaves  instead  of  burning  them.  Incorporate  these 
with  lime  and  Takings  into  a  compost  heap.  The  com- 
post will  be  found  both  convenient  and  useful  for  broad- 
casting before  spading  the  vegetable  garden  in  the 
spring. 

Plants  of  lettuce,  cauliflower,  cabbage,  etc.,  that 
are  to  winter  over  for  early  spring  settings  should  be 
put  into  the  coldframe. 

By  giving  the  lettuce  bed  protection  in  the  way  of  a 
covering  with  an  old  sheet  or  straw  held  above  the 
plants,  nice  heads  of  lettuce  may  be  had  in  the  open 
until  Christmas. 

Beets,  carrots,  turnips,  celery,  and  late  potatoes 
should  be  stored  in  a  cool  dry  cellar  for  winter  use. 

As  the  beds  are  cleared  of  existing  crops  they  should 
be  thoroughly  composted  and  dug  over.  Then  sow, 
broadcast  or  in  drills,  corn  salad,  kale  and  spinach, 
and  enjoy  them  for  early  spring  use. 

The  strawberry  bed  should  have  attention  now. 
The  plants  should  be  thinned  out  and  the  beds  heavily 
mulched. 

Transplant  the  red  raspberry,  and  mulch  heavily 
when  the  ground  freezes  hard. 

Lilies  and  other  flowers  grown  from  hardy  bulbs, 
which  are  to  be  left  in  the  ground  all  winter,  should 

105 


THE  GARDEN  PRIMER 


always  be  planted  on  beds  slightly  raised  above  the  sur- 
rounding ground  to  insure  proper  drainage  throughout 
the  year.  When  the  tops  die  down  cut  the  stems  off 
and  cover  the  beds  two  or  three  inches  deep  with 
leaves,  or  long,  strawy  manure  to  guard  against  sudden 
changes  of  freezing  and  thawing. 

There  are  a  great  many  flowers  that  do  better  from 
seed  planted  in  the  fall  of  the  year.  The  Carnation  is 
hardy  and  the  plants  from  seed  sown  in  the  fall  will 
bloom  next  season.  Others,  among  those  of  which 
the  seed  can  now  be  sown  to  advantage,  are  the  Holly- 
hock, Chrysanthemum  (perennial),  Phlox,  Poppy 
(Oriental),  Aster  (hardy  Alpine),  Campanula  (Canter- 
bury Bells),  Aquilegia  (Columbine),  Digitalis  (Fox- 
glove), and  Primula  (vulgar is).  Pansy  seeds  are 
planted  largely  in  the  open  ground  in  the  fall  for 
spring  bloom.  An  examination  of  the  autumn  cata- 
logues issued  by  the  nurserymen  and  seedsmen  will 
enable  one  to  extend  this  list  for  fall  planting.  Send 
for  catalogues  and  enjoy  one  of  the  greatest  pleas- 
ures of  gardening — the  pleasure  of  anticipation. 

When  the  cool  nights  blight  the  foliage  of  the  tuber- 
ous-rooted Begonias,  the  plants  should  be  dug  up,  the 
tops  removed  and  the  roots  allowed  to  dry  gradually 
in  a  cool,  sheltered  place.  When  thoroughly  dry  and 
ripened,  clean  off  the  small  rootlets,  wrap  each  bulb 
in  soft  cotton,  and  store  them  in  a  moderately  warm 
place  until  spring. 

106 


THE  GARDENER'S  KALENDAR 

A  great  many  hardy  perennials  do  best  when  planted 
at  this  season  of  the  year.  They  get  well  established 
during  the  winter  and  are  ready  to  start  growing  with 
the  spring.  Prepare  the  ground  well  before  setting 
them  out ;  spade  to  a  depth  of  eighteen  or  twenty  inches, 
and  generously  enrich  the  soil.  The  perennial  flower- 
ing pea  (Lathyrus) ,  Blanket  Flower  (Gaillardia  grandi- 
flora),  Peonies,  Japanese,  German  and  English  Iris, 
and  Hollyhocks,  are  among  the  large  variety  of  old- 
fashioned  garden  flowers  which  can  now  be  planted 
to  great  advantage. 

When  the  tops  of  flowers  grown  from  bulbs,  such 
as  Gladioli,  Dahlias,  etc.,  die  down,  the  tops  should 
be  cut  off  an  inch  or  so  above  the  surface  of  the  ground, 
the  bulbs  dug  and  dried  in  a  cool  place.  When  well 
ripened,  store  in  a  warm  room  or  cellar  for  the  winter. 
If  the  place  where  storage  is  to  be  made  is  not  perfectly 
dry  and  frost-proof,  pack  the  roots  in  boxes  or  barrels, 
covering  with  dry  sand  or  any  other  suitable  material 
which  will  prevent  shriveling  or  freezing. 

DECEMBER 

EVERY  tree,  shrub  and  vine  about  the  garden  will 
be  vastly  benefited  by  a  liberal  mulching  at  this 
time.  With  what  to  mulch  should  not  be  a  troublesome 
question.  Foliage  of  all  kinds  has  been  falling,  is  now 
almost  through  falling,  and  should  be  raked  together 
and  applied  about  the  trees  and  shrubs  to  prevent 

107 


THE  GARDEN  PRIMER 


damage  from  alternate  freezing  and  thawing  of  the 
ground.  The  new  leaves  can  be  held  in  place  about  the 
roots  of  plants  by  throwing  over  them  a  few  spadefuls  of 
coarse  manure  or  rich  earth.  Besides  the  practical 
utility  of  the  fallen  and  decaying  foliage  as  a  mulch, 
the  garden  will  be  left  in  a  much  more  presentable  con- 
dition when  it  has  been  gathered  up. 

It  is  better  to  prune  grape-vines  now  than  to  wait  till 
spring,  as  the  vines  pruned  in  March  will  be  more 
liable  to  be  damaged. 

Bank  up  the  plants  outside  in  order  that  alternate 
freezing  and  thawing  will  not  winter-kill  them. 

If  tent  caterpillars  have  bothered  your  garden  the 
past  season,  cut  down  any  wild  cherry  trees  around  you, 
for  these  are  sure  to  attract  these  insect  pests. 

Coldframes  for  such  flowers  as  Violets,  and  for  the 
plants  must  be  covered  at  night.  Use  straw  mats  and 
wooden  shutters  for  this. 

Saw  off  dead  limbs  from  your  trees. 

Cut  off  tops  of  all  perennials,  and  give  a  light  mulch 
to  all  those  requiring  protection,  but  be  careful  not  to 
use  heavy  manure. 

108 


THE  GARDENER'S  KALENDAR 

This  is  the  time  of  the  year  when  all  vines  should  be 
given  assistance  in  the  way  of  protection  from  the  snows 
and  ice  formations.  They  should  be  gone  over  and 
carefully  tied  to  some  support  so  that  they  will  not  be 
broken  or  otherwise  injured  by  the  weight  of  snow  and 
ice.  If  it  is  necessary  to  put  up  a  post  or  stake  for 
support  do  not  hesitate  to  do  so.  There  are  more 
sightly  things  than  stakes  driven  up  through  the  yard, 
but  the  unsightliness  is  more  than  compensated  for  by 
the  good  results. 


109 


XVIII 
TABLE  OF  SPRAYING  FOR   GARDEN   PESTS 


Table  of   First   and   Second   Spraying 

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INDEX. 


Achimenes,  83. 

Agriculture,  Department  of,  30, 
36. 

Agricultural  Experiment  Sta- 
tion, State,  35. 

air,  factor  in  soil,  8. 

altitude,  effect  of,  on  plants,  5. 

annuals,  half-hardy,  4;  hardy, 
3;  planting,  89;  tender,  4. 

aphids,  49,  59. 

apple,  40. 

April  garden  operations,  86. 

asparagus,  84. 

Aster,  89,  93. 

athracnose,  54,  60. 

August  garden  operations,  95. 

bedding,  94. 

biennials,  hardy,  3;  tender,  4. 

birds,  88,  90. 

blight,  53. 

bulbs,  96,  102,  103,  105,  107. 

cabbage-worm,  56. 

calendar  of  garden  operations, 

79- 

Campanula,  65,  81. 
Carnation,  81,  90,  93,  106. 
cherry,  40. 
Chrysanthemum,  8l. 
clay  loam,,  10. 
Clematis,  42. 
climatic  conditions,  6. 
climbers,  5. 


coldframe,  45,  50,  51, 87,  89,  105. 

Columbine,  65. 

common  names  of  plants,  14. 

Cosmos,  83. 

cotyledons,  19. 

cultivation,  25. 

currant,  41. 

cuttings,  82. 

cutworm,  56,  59,  92. 

Cypress  vine,  12. 

Dahlia,  91. 

Daisy,  81. 

December    garden    operations, 

107. 

Delphinium,  94. 
Department  of  Agriculture,  30, 

36. 

dibble,  21,  22. 
diseases,  plant,  54. 
divisions  of  plants,  13. 

Easter  Lilies,  93. 
evergreens,  42 ;  hedges,  42. 

fall  sowing,  106,  107. 
February  garden  operations,  82. 
fertilizing,  29. 
fertilizers,    29;    complete,    32; 

essentials  of,  32;  sources  of, 

32- 

flats,  16. 
float,  17. 
flower  gardening,  64. 


flower-beds,  2. 

flower  planting-table,  68,  69. 

Forget-me-not,  81. 

Forsythia,  41. 

frost,  88,  97. 

fruits,  orchard,  86;   small,  40; 

tree,  40. 

fungicides,  53,  57. 
fungi  spores,  54. 

garden,  flower,  63,  vegetable,  71. 
garden  operations  :  January,  79 ; 

February,    82;     March,    84; 

April,    86;    May,    88;    June, 

91 ;    July     92 ;    August,    95 ; 

September,  94;  October,  98; 

November,     104 ;     December, 

107. 

garden-making,  first  steps  in,  I. 
garden-paths,  84. 
garden-pests,  53. 
garden-tools,  61,  62. 
germination  of  seed,  94. 
girdling,  80. 
Gladioli,  83,  90. 
grapes,  83. 

half-hardy  annuals,  4;  peren- 
nials, 3. 

hardy  annuals,  3;  perennials,  3. 

hedges,  evergreen  42;  86. 

Hibiscus,  41. 

Hollyhocks,  53,  88. 

Honeysuckle,  41. 

hotbed,  45 ;  ventilation,  49 ; 
sash,  46;  spraying,  49;  tem- 
perature, 48. 

house-plants,  84. 

Hyacinth,  101. 

Hydrangea,  41. 

indoor     sowing,     16;     flower- 
seeds,  85 ;  vegetable  seeds,  83. 
Ipomcea,  12. 
insecticides,  53,  58. 


insect  pests,  55,  108. 

insects,   chewing,    55;    sucking, 

55- 

January  garden  operations,  79. 
June  garden  operations,  91. 

Kalendar  of  garden  operations. 
79- 

landscape  features,  2. 

Larkspur,  95. 

Latin  names  of  plants,  II. 

latitude,  effect  of,  on  plants,  5. 

lawn,  83,  97,  98. 

Lilac,  41. 

Lily-of-the- Valley,  85. 

lime  dressing,  9. 

liquid  spraying,  53. 

loam,  8 ;  clay,  10 ;  sandy,  10. 

Lobelia,  81. 

Lonicera,  41. 

Manure,   for  border  beds,  95; 

garden,  104;  hotbed,  47,  48; 

lawn,  104 ;  sandy  soil,  9. 
March  garden  operations,  84. 
Marguerite,  81. 
maturing    plants,    requirements 

of,  25. 

May  garden  operations,  88. 
Moonflower,  12. 
Morning  Glory,  12. 
mulching,  84,  87,  89,  96,  97,  104. 

names  of  plants,  n;  common, 

14;  Latin,  n. 
Narcissus,  103. 
Nasturtium,  91. 
nomenclature,  n. 
November    garden    operations, 

104. 

October  garden  operations,  98. 
orchard  fruits,  86. 


116 


orchard     trees,     transplanting, 

86,  104. 
outdoor  sowing,  89. 

paths,  garden,  84. 

Pansy,  81. 

peach,  40. 

pear,  40. 

Peony,  95. 

perennials,  from  seed  3;  half- 
hardy,  3 ;  hardy,  3 ;  tender,  4. 

pests,  insect,  59;  fungous,  60; 
garden,  53. 

Petunia,  81. 

Phlox,  12,  13. 

plant-diseases,  54. 

plant- food,  30;  in  water,  31. 

planting,  annuals,  89;  for  suc- 
cession, 89;  hardy  borders, 
90;  scheme,  2. 

planting  table,  of  flowers,  68, 
69;  of  vegetables,  74,  75,  76. 

plants,  25;  sorts  of,  3. 

plum,  40. 

Poppies,  transplanting,  4. 

Portulaca,  91. 

pruning,  37,  85,  87,  90,  95; 
reason  for,  37;  trees,  42. 

raspberry,  41. 

recipes,  fungicide,  59;  insecti- 
cide, 58. 

Roses,  41,  89,  103,  104. 
rhubarb,  84,  85. 

sandy  loam,  10. 

seed,  annuals,  3,  5;  biennials, 
3,  5;  perennials,  3,  5;  cata- 
logues, ii ;  soaked  to  promote 
germination,  12,  94;  self- 
sowing,  6. 

seed-sowing,  directions,  15,  16, 
19,  24;  depth  to  plant,  16;  in 
flats,  16. 

seedlings,  21 ;  fresh,  22 ;  trans- 
planting, 21. 


self-sowing  plants,  4;  seeds,  6. 

September  garden  operations, 
94. 

shrubs,  4 ;  flowering,  41. 

Snapdragon,  81. 

soil,  autumn  working  of,  10; 
classification  of,  7;  composi- 
tion of,  30;  deep,  8;  fertiliz- 
ing, 29;  light,  8;  modified,  8; 
moisture  in,  26;  require- 
ments, 29;  for  seedlings,  21; 
sweetening,  32;  test,  9; 
weathering,  9. 

sowing,  15,  16,  19,  24;  indoors, 
3,  16;  outdoors,  3,  4,  16,  17; 
perennials,  93;  for  late  vege- 
tables, 91. 

Spirea,  41. 

spraying,  53,  89;  apparatus,  56, 
58. 

State  Agricultural  Experiment 
Stations,  35. 

Stevia,  82. 

Sunflower,  90. 

Sweet  Peas,  88,  93,  99. 

Syringa,  41. 

table,    flower-planting,    68,    69; 

vegetable-planting,  74,  75,  76. 
tender  annuals,  4;  biennials,  4; 

perennials,  3,  4,  94. 
tillage,  26. 

tools,  garden,  25,  27,  61. 
trailers,  5. 
training,  37. 
transplanting,  6,  19,  88 ;  orchard 

trees,     86;     perennials,     94; 

seedlings,  21. 
tree-planting,  87,  99. 
trees,  4. 

trimming,  38,  39. 
Tulip,  102. 

vegetable-gardening,  71;  seeds, 
83 ;  planting-tables,  74,  75,  7& 
Verbena,  81. 


Viburnum,  42. 

vines,  5;  tying  up,  84. 

watering,    amount   of,    18;    ex- 
cess, 17;  seedings,  22. 


weeds,  25,  61. 
Weigela,  42. 
window-boxes,  89. 
winter  plant-effects,  80;  protec- 
tion, 5,  94. 


118 


14  DAY  USE 

RETURN  TO  DESK  FROM  WHICH  BORROWED 
LANDSCAPE  ARCHITECTURE  ' 

This  book  is  due  on  the  last  date  stamped  below,  or 

on  the  date  to  which  renewed. 
Renewed  books  are  subject  to  immediate  recall. 


JUL141961 

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1 

